It's no secret that The Mandalorian is home to a lot of satisfying moments for Star Wars fans. The hit Disney+ series finished a successful sophomore run last December, but it's safe to say the anticipation for the third season is already at an all-time high.
Created by Jon Favreau, The Mandalorian introduced various characters from the galaxy far, far away, but it's clear that the champions of the show are the two lead stars in the form of Pedro Pascal's Din Djarin and Grogu.
Throughout the first two seasons, the runaway duo experienced numerous challenges on different planets due to the never-ending pursuit of the remaining forces of the Empire led by the dangerous Moff Gideon. Despite that, the main mission of Mando to bring Grogu back to his kind (the Jedi) was fulfilled at the end of Season 2 due to the last-minute arrival of Luke Skywalker.
While fans are still waiting for new information about the third season of the show, an interesting tidbit has emerged from one of the crew members.
THE BIRTH OF THE MANDALORIAN REVEALED
The Mandalorian concept artist Brian Matyas sat down with The National Arts Club to talk about the widely successful Star Wars series from Disney+, and one of the topics that were discussed was the early progress of the show.
Matyas shared one of his works from The Art of The Mandalorian (as seen above) that showcases Boba Fett holding Grogu in front of a group of Mandalorians. The concept artist bared that it was actually one of the “pitch piece[s]” for the show that was presented to then Disney CEO Bob Iger:
“I did an image of Boba Fett holding Baby Yoda to a bunch of Mandalorians. That was the pitch piece for Bob Iger. So we had to get approval from Disney [for them] to give the thumbs up, to move forward with it.”
Matyas explained what happened during the pitching presentation involving showrunners Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni. Ultimately, it was revealed by the artist that the concept art above became a significant piece in terms of helping The Mandalorian obtain the green light from Disney:
“Yeah, there's a small group of concept artists that pitch a handful of images, and they are all presented. I think Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni went and presented it to Bob Iger and they got the budget. That's when they gave the art department the green light to get started, which happened a few months later after that...”
This was first reported by Boba Fee Fan Club from Twitter.
THE DYNAMIC BETWEEN MANDO AND GROGU
The inclusion of Baby Yoda was one of the well-kept secrets of The Mandalorian when it premiered back in 2019. The debut of the Yoda-like toddler earned a positive reception from Star Wars fans everywhere, ultimately propelling the character as one of the most recognizable figures of the franchise.
If anything, this latest reveal from Matyas should add more evidence that Grogu's addition to the series was a fitting one for the show.
The concept art that was shown by Matyas essentially encapsulates the main premise of the show: a bounty hunter protecting a child with his allies sharing the same sentiment. That being said, this intriguing concept served as the moment of triumph for the show's pitching process, thus leading Bob Iger to approve it as a Disney+ series.
Another takeaway from Matyas' comments is the fact that Boba Fett was originally planned to be the main character protecting Baby Yoda for the show. While this plot point was briefly achieved in Season 2 (he did protect The Child from the Empire after all), it seems that Favreau and Filoni opted to introduce an original protagonist in the form of Din Djarin, and the rest, as they say, is history.
No doubt, the lifeblood of The Mandalorian is anchored towards the father-son relationship of Mando and Grogu, but it looks like the show will experience a major status quo in Season 3 since the pair was separated during last year's finale.
Whatever the case, it's reasonable to assume that Mando will soon reunite with Grogu at some point, and it will be interesting to find out how that moment will translate on-screen down the road.
The first two seasons of The Mandalorian are now streaming on Disney+.
The full interview with Brian Matyas and The National Arts Club can be seen below:
