There are major movie franchises, and then there's Star Wars. Generations have been brought up by the galaxy far, far away, which has brought new projects to theaters and streaming with a Disney+ subscription. There haven't been any Star Wars movies in theaters for years, but that'll change with The Mandalorian and Grogu. Director Jon Favreau recently spoke about the challenges of taking that story from TV to theaters, and some serious points were made.
What we know about The Mandalorian and Grogu is limited, but there's a ton of hype around the upcoming Star Wars movie. While speaking at the Star Wars: Most Wanted event (via ScreenRant) Favreau talked about the practical challenges of bringing his franchise to the big screen, saying:
We gotta up our game now for the movie theater, and that means taller aspect ratios for IMAX, building sets that take full advantage of. That making the visual effects of, of, of the quality and caliber that, you know, that we have to notch everything up and then the storytelling as well.
Touche. Going from TV screens and smart devices to an IMAX screen is going to be a huge transition for Din Djarin and Grogu. And as such, Jon Favreau's movie had to step up its game visually, especially related to visual and special effects, as it has to be on the same level as previous Star Wars movies. Talk about pressure.
Star Wars has been missing from theaters since The Rise of Skywalker's ending, so that's also likely adding some stakes to the situation. Later in the same appearance, Jon Favreau spoke about another new challenge to The Mandalorian and Grogu: keeping people's attention for a full movie. In his words:
We want to take you on an adventure, and that adventure has to fill up the screen and has to be something where people at this moment in time when so much is competing for your attention, that you're gonna stop what you're doing and you're gonna go to a movie theater, and you're gonna sit down in that movie theater, and you're not gonna be able to pause it and you're not gonna be able to eat the food out of your refrigerator, and you have to go there and, and you have to have such a good experience that you say.
Honestly, I didn't even think about this. But this is going to be a huge adjustment for fans of the live-action Star Wars show. Not only is a movie going to be significantly longer, but fans are going to have to adjust the way they enjoy the adventure. That means to pausing, no bathroom breaks, and no scrolling on your phone. And Favreau wants to make sure the story is compelling enough to make that happen.
The Season 3 finale of The Mandalorian made some big changes, with Grogu now older, trained in The Force, and much more capable than when we met him years ago. And it should be fun to see where the beloved characters go in their movie debut.
The Mandalorian and Grogu is currently expected to arrive in theaters on May 22nd as part of the 2026 movie release list. The movie's Super Bowl trailer was the subject of some backlash, so hopefully we're treated to more footage soon.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
