Empire Magazine has released multiple covers and a new image for The Mandalorian & Grogu movie, offering a fresh look at Din Djarin and his little partner as the duo heads to theaters.
The Empire piece also includes new quotes from Dave Filoni and Pedro Pascal that frame the film as a character-first Star Wars event rather than a project carrying the weight of launching a new trilogy.
Empire reveals new The Mandalorian & Grogu covers and image
The new Empire images spotlight Din and Grogu in two very different moods.
The image leans into the action with Mando in a snowy setting. The covers go behind-the-scenes Din and Grogu sitting in a director’s chair as if they’re part of the production.
Dave Filoni says it’s “a big celebration”
Filoni, who co-wrote The Mandalorian & Grogu and directed second-unit on the film, compared today’s Star Wars landscape to the pressure that came with Episode VII.
“Episode VII was a completely different entity,” explains Filoni. “I had dreams of Episode VII since I came out of Return Of The Jedi. You were like, ‘After VI comes VII! Where’s VII?’ We’re in a completely different era of Star Wars now.”
Filoni adds that The Mandalorian & Grogu doesn’t have to introduce an entire new trilogy or a roster of unknown heroes. Instead, he calls the movie “a big celebration” of its title pair.
Where Din and Grogu are after Season 3
The Season 3 finale felt like a real ending, with Din and Grogu settling into a homestead on Nevarro after taking down Moff Gideon and helping reclaim Mandalore.
But Pedro Pascal says it’s not the end of their story.
“It only felt like the ending of a particular chapter,” Pascal tells Empire.
The finale also set up Din taking missions for the New Republic at Adelphi Base, which opens up a new version of his work.
“They open up the opportunity for him to continue his best work as a bounty hunter, but just working for the good guys,” says Pascal. “Combining skill and morality. Whereas when we meet him first, it’s simply skill, and Beskar, and [the Mandalorian] Creed. Through his relationship to Grogu, there is an expansion of his heart and a disarming of his armor, so to speak, that leads him to fight for what he knows is right.”
Filoni says spectacle isn’t enough
Filoni also stresses that bigger set pieces only matter if the characters land.
“What can’t you do now?” says Filoni, noting that spectacle only goes so far. “It’s a question of, ‘Is the audience going to believe it? Are they going to feel it?’ That comes through the characters. If the characters are connecting, then the adventure plays, the action plays, the tension plays.”
Cast, director, and release date
Directed by Jon Favreau, The Mandalorian & Grogu stars Pedro Pascal as Din Djarin, Sigourney Weaver as Colonel Ward, and Jeremy Allen White as Rotta the Hutt.
The film opens May 22, 2026, only in theaters.
(source: empireonline)
