Jon Favreau has been talking with Empire magazine about why Din Djarin and Grogu’s reunion occurred in Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett and not The Mandalorian.
Fans were left with plenty of questions following the Season 2 finale of Star Wars: The Mandalorian. Chief amongst those was, how would the show continue now that Grogu had departed with Luke Skywalker to be trained in the ways of the Force by the Jedi Master? Whilst the answer was ultimately revealed in Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett and not Star Wars: The Mandalorian Season 3, the decision to do so hasn’t been revealed until now.
Talking with Empire movie magazine, Star Wars: The Mandalorian co-creator, writer and director, Jon Favreau, explains why he and fellow co-creator Dave Filoni decided to choose that particular path for the characters’ stories to play out.
“We couldn’t just hit a hard reset,” says Favreau. “It’s going to be interesting to see how this unfolds for people who may not have seen The Book Of Boba Fett. But I think The Book Of Boba Fett offered time to pass. You saw what Mando was like without Baby Yoda and we saw what Grogu was like without the Mandalorian and neither of them was doing too good. So them coming back together was a really good plot point that allows us to jump back into Season 3 while maintaining the central relationship.”
Regarding Grogu’s time away with Luke, Favreau says, “Just because this kid has the potential and had training, does he belong away from the Mandalorian? I saw it more like Paper Moon, where the whole thing is about delivering the kid to the blood relative, only to realise that, whether genetically through her father or just through bonding, Tatum O’Neal has to end up with Ryan O’Neal. That ending feels really good to me. And this little kid [Grogu] is given a decision to choose. And the kid chooses the emotional relationship and wants to be with the Mandalorian, and passing up Yoda’s lightsaber. Part of you wants to see him develop in that way, and part the other.”
The upcoming April issue of Empire magazine is on sale February 16 and will include two different covers, plus over 20 pages of Star Wars: The Mandalorian Season 3 interviews, artwork, concept sketches and much more.
Images: Empire
