All The Mandalorian Season 3 News And Details (So Far)
The Mandalorian season 3 is on the way in March 2023, and the « Mando season 3″ trailer has fans more hyped than ever for the next installment of the flagship Star Wars Disney+ series. Easily one of the biggest shows to spin out of the Star Wars universe, The Mandalorian has dominated pop culture ever since Disney released it way back in 2020 — though by Mando season 3 in 2023, the show isn’t just about Din and about Grogu anymore. With Boba Fett, Ahsoka Tano, Bo-Katan Kryze, and even Luke Skywalker showing up in The Mandalorian, the series is now more expansive than ever. The Mandalorian season 3 hits Disney+ in March 2023, and here’s everything that’s known about what can be expected from Din Djarin and Grogu’s next adventure.
While The Mandalorian season 1 was about laying the foundation for a bigger story, season 2 dove deep into Star Wars lore, taking viewers on a journey through a variety of sand, snow, water, and forest planets. Season 2 expanded on season 1 considerably, and The Book of Boba Fett‘s episode 5 fleshed out Grogu and Din Djarin’s stories too (The Book of Boba Fett is essential viewing ahead of Mando season 3). The finale of Boba Fett left off with Grogu and Din reunited again, so season 3 of The Mandalorian was always guaranteed to bring the « Mando and Baby Yoda » team-up adventures that made the show popular — which the trailer and promo-footage have proudly showcased. Here’s everything to know about The Mandalorian season 3, including release date, story details, and casting updates.
The Mandalorian New Season 3 Trailer And Updates
The latest trailer for The Mandalorian season 3 arrived during the Buccaneers-Cowboys NFL Wild Card playoff game. In less than two minutes, the new Mandalorian season 3 trailer gave the most in-depth look at the new season of The Mandalorian so far. It shows how high anticipation is for the next season of The Mandalorian, as the news that the trailer was arriving generated more buzz online than some of the best sci-fi shows of 2022 during their entire run. Disney and Lucasfilm had a lot of success in 2022 with shows like Andor and Obi-Wan Kenobi, but the Star Wars tentpole property when it comes to Disney+ is still, beyond doubt, The Mandalorian.
As Mando says in the new The Mandalorian season 3 trailer, « Our people are scattered… like stars in the galaxy. What are we? What do we stand for? » Din Djarin speaks these clues to the overarching plot of the third season while surrounded by other Mandalorians from the various separate clans, identified by their respective armors. Grogu and Mando also return to meet with the Bounty Hunters’ Guild agent who helped them escape the Empire, Greef Karga, whose new, ostentatious wardrobe is just one of the many striking improvements to the formerly depressed desert planet. Speaking with The Armorer, Mando confirms his plans to return to Mandalore in order to « be forgiven for my transgressions. » A group of Mandalorians then join Mando in defending Nevarro from mercenaries that could either be agents of the Empire or the Pyke Syndicate from The Book of Boba Fett.
Finally, The Mandalorian season 3 trailer ends with Grogu using the Force to push away a bipedal beast out of a cave in the desert, with Mando’s off-screen voice saying, « This is the way. » Combined with the reveals in earlier trailers, it’s implied that The Mandalorian will see Grogu further realizing his true potential as a Jedi despite turning away from formal training, and possibly becoming the first Mandalorian Jedi since Tarre Vizsla, who created the Darksaber. All these reveals imply a number of possibilities, chief among them being the outbreak of a Mandalorian season 3 civil war between clans/factions that support Bo-Katan Kryze, Din Djarin, or another Mandalorian as their people’s leader. It’s also possible that Grogu finally wields the Darksaber and even teaches Mando how to properly do so, allowing Mando to rise to his true destiny.
The Mandalorian Season 3 Release Date Is March 1 2023
After a few delays, the confirmed The Mandalorian season 3 release date is March 1, 2023. Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy had initially announced a Christmas premiere date for the new Mandalorian season during Disney’s 2020 Investor Day, but it turned out she was referencing The Book of Boba Fett. The Mandalorian season 3 began filming in October 2021, but unfortunately, production was disrupted. In July 2022 reshoots were underway, as revealed by Bo-Katan Kryze actor Katee Sackhoff. Reshoots shouldn’t necessarily be a cause for concern, but some fans worried they could lead to a delayed release.
It turned out that the reshoots were indeed nothing to worry about. While there was initially talk of a February 2023 release, the new Mandalorian season has managed to keep to its release window of early 2023. As it stands, The Mandalorian season 3 is flying straight for its March 1, 2023 date. Unless there’s a sudden change in direction from Disney and Lucasfilm, fans can expect to see Din Djarin and Grogu back on Disney+ for Mando season 3 in less than three months.
The Mandalorian Season 3 Story Details
The Mandalorian season 3 is likely to dive much deeper into Mandalorian culture and history. Season 2 saw Din Djarin encounter Bo-Katan and her Nite Owls, and he vowed to help them reclaim Mandalore if they assisted him in recovering the Child. Mando defeated Moff Gideon in combat, taking the Darksaber and unwittingly becoming Mandalore’s rightful ruler. As seen in The Book of Boba Fett episode 5, not all Mandalorians are content to leave the Darksaber with Din Djarin, and he is likely to find himself challenged as he attempts to reunite the scattered Mandalorians. Unfortunately, Din Djarin will clearly need to train; non-Jedi can use lightsabers, but they need to practice meditative techniques that allow them to bond with the blade, and Din Djarin doesn’t know any of these at present.
The Mandalorian season 2 finale ended with Luke Skywalker training Grogu as part of his new Jedi Order, but Din Djarin couldn’t accept this was a final goodbye. He even had Beskar armor forged for Grogu, who he considers a Foundling. Sadly, Din Djarin’s quest in season 2 has cost him dearly, with the survivors of his old clan exiling Din Djarin for breaking the helmet rule during the quest. This made Din Djarin all the more eager to reconnect with the rest of his family — especially the Child. Sure enough, the two reunite at the end of The Book of Boba Fett, with Grogu choosing the Mandalorian Way over the Jedi Teachings. The Mandalorian season 3 will start with them together once again, possibly with Boba Fett characters like Fennec Shan, Black Krrsantan, or more of the Original Trilogy’s Han-Solo-hunting Mandalorian, Boba Fett.
In addition to Mando’s journey, Giancarlo Esposito and Katee Sackhoff have also revealed some key details about Gideon and Bo-Katan’s arcs in The Mandalorian season 3. Season 2 saw Gideon end up behind bars, but Esposito has teased that season 3 could see his character break out of prison and that the villain’s master plan for the season involves bringing together the leaders of the fractured Empire for a nefarious purpose. As for Sackhoff’s Bo-Katan, her story in The Mandalorian season 3 will develop her relationship with Din Djarin as two very different Mandalorians, as well as explore her own personal journey of self-discovery.
The Mandalorian Season 3 Cast & Spinoffs
The Mandalorian season 3 will, of course, bring back Pedro Pascal as Din Djarin, aka Mando, and it will feature the puppet Grogu as well. But beyond them, Moff Gideon actor Giancarlo Esposito has already confirmed that Moff Gideon will return in season 3 and even play a large role. Carl Weathers is returning as Greef Karga too, although Gina Carano won’t be back as Cara Dune given her character has been fired by Disney. Omid Abadhi os bringing Dr. Pershing back to screens, and Peli Motto will of course be with Din and Grogu for The Mandalorian’s new season, with Amy Sedaris once again portraying the fan-favorite.
In a fun twist, Christopher Lloyd and Tim Meadows have also been cast for The Mandalorian season 3 in as-yet-unknown roles. The interesting question is whether any of the characters associated with the various spinoffs, such as Rosario Dawson’s Ahsoka, Temuera Morrison’s Boba Fett, and Ming-Na Wen’s Fennec Shand, will appear as well. There’s also speculation that live-action versions of characters from Star Wars: Rebels could appear. The Mandalorian spin-off Ahsoka is confirmed to be bringing Sabine Wren (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) to the fore. Since season 3 of The Mandalorian will be stooped in the Mandalorians themselves, a Liu Bordizzo Sabine Wren cameo in The Mandalorian isn’t that implausible.
How The Mandalorian Season 3 Will Be Different
With all the anticipation built up for The Mandalorian season 3, it’s set to have some distinctly different characteristics than the previous two seasons. For one, season 3 will see the dynamic between Grogu and Mando continue to evolve. As Grogu’s relationship with the Force continues to grow and change, the balance of who protects who might become quite different moving forward, and Grogu himself will need to make some significant choices about how to handle his power. On the whole, The Mandalorian season 3 promises to be darker than previous installments, with several of the cast promising that it’s also better and denser with action and character beats.
Given that The Book of Boba Fett (which is essentially season 2.5 of The Mandalorian) received backlash for poor writing, it’s a reassuring sign that The Mandalorian season 3 is took the time to develop its characters and story in a deeper, more mature way. It’s also been confirmed that the Armorer will play a more active role than ever before in The Mandalorian season 3. This makes sense, given how much the season promises to focus on Din Djarin’s return to Mandalore and his quest to redeem himself as a Mandalorian.
The Mandalorian Season 3 Teaser
Disney released the first teaser trailer for The Mandalorian season 3 at 2022’s D23 Expo, and it instantly created a buzz throughout the fandom. It was expected that season 3 would delve more into Mandalorian culture, but nobody expected just how deep the show would go. If the trailer is anything to go by, season 3 will indeed see Din and Grogu traveling to Mandalore itself, giving fans a first look at the homeland of the titular warrior clan. There were also more Mandalorians shown in the pre-release footage than have been seen in any Star Wars project to date. The wide sweeping shots of Mandalore and quick-stop tour of many colorful Mandalorian armor sets hint that season 3 is pushing The Mandalorian toward the standards and spectacle of Star Wars theatrical movie releases, with shots of a full-on dogfight in Din’s refurbished Naboo Starfighter increasing the combat stakes significantly.
There were several shots of Bo-Katan in what may well be the Children of the Watch’s throne room on Concordia, one of Mandalore’s moons. Din made an oath to help Bo-Katan take back Mandalore, and in the footage, the tension between them is palpable. It already looks like Din Djarin is going to be incredibly conflicted throughout The Mandalorian season 3, paralleling the choices Grogu had to make in The Book of Boba Fett. There were many shots of what appeared to be dozens of Mandalorians engaged in a full-on skirmish. Star Wars is a franchise known for its vast battle sequences, yet The Mandalorian has surprisingly few. If the siege, reclamation, and fate of Mandalore form a key plot arc, The Mandalorian season 3 already looks set to expand the scope of the franchise more than previous seasons combined.