The Mandalorian season 3: Everything we know about the Disney Plus Star Wars show’s future

The Mandalorian, the live-action Star Wars series that introduced Baby Yoda, brought back Boba Fett and saw the return of a certain Jedi, is getting a third season and several spinoffs on Disney Plus. We know of one actor who won’t be returning though: Gina Carano, who played Cara Dune in seasons 1 and 2.

Let’s take a look at where Mando’s adventures, which take place a few years after Return of the Jedi, are likely to go next. We’ll be diving into full SPOILER territory for the first two seasons, so be warned if you aren’t up to date.

What we know about season 3

The second season ended with a post-credits scene teasing The Book of Boba Fett, which hits Disney Plus in December 2021. It was initially unclear if this was season 3, with the focus shifting to the bounty hunter, or a spinoff. Jon Favreau, the show’s creator, soon clarified that it was a spinoff (more on that below) — Mando’s adventures will continue in the third season. 

We don’t have a release date for the next season yet, but The Book of Boba Fett reportedly began in November and Favreau noted that production on season 3 of The Mandalorian will start after the spinoff is done. It’ll probably come out in 2022.

Now playing:
Watch this:

The basics of The Mandalorian

2:40

Since season 2 seemed to wrap up the Baby Yoda plot line, with Luke Skywalker taking Grogu for Jedi training, you might wonder where the show can go next. Mando’s mission — reuniting the little guy with his own kind — is done, so his priorities will shift.

During season 2, Mando (real name Din Djarin) also ran into another group of Mandalorians, led by Bo-Katan Kryze. She was on a mission to retake their home world Mandalore and get the Darksaber (a Mandalorian symbol of leadership) back from Imperial Moff Gideon. In the season finale, Mando took possession of the Darksaber and inadvertently became the leader of the Mandalorians —  it seems likely that he’ll join Bo-Katan’s mission in season 3.

We also found out that Mando isn’t a typical Mandalorian. Bo-Katan revealed that he’s a Child of the Watch, a “cult of religious zealots that broke away from Mandalorian society.” That’s why he isn’t supposed to remove his helmet and reveal his face to anyone, but he’s gradually become more open to showing his face during the first two seasons. We haven’t seen other members of his clan since season 1, but he’ll probably have some questions next time their paths cross.

Disney also announced three of its many upcoming Star Wars shows — The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka and Rangers of the New Republic — that’ll set around the same point in the timeline as The Mandalorian, so plot threads from the those could feed into season 3 (or some future season).

What’s the deal with Boba Fett?

The closing shot of season 2’s first episode revealed a mysterious man (Temuera Morrison) watching Mando from afar. He appears to be wearing Tusken Raider gear, and then he turns around, revealing the face of Boba Fett — the bounty hunter who fell into the Sarlacc pit in Return of the Jedi.

The Mandalorian armor that Cobb Vanth (Timothy Olyphant) was wearing in the episode was Boba’s, and he tracked Mando until he could reclaim it in the season’s sixth episode. 

After helping Mando rescue Grogu from the Imperial Remnant in the season finale, a postcredits scene revealed Boba’s next move — seizing power in Tatooine’s criminal underworld. He’s getting his own Disney Plus spinoff show, The Book of Boba Fett, next December.

Morrison played bounty hunter Jango Fett in Attack of the Clones and also portrayed the clone troopers in that movie and Revenge of the Sith. Jango was recruited by Count Dooku to serve as the genetic template for the clone army used by the Galactic Republic, as part of Darth Sidious’ convoluted plot to wipe out the Jedi. Part of Jango’s payment was an unaltered clone that he could raise as his son — Boba — but the elder Fett was killed during the Battle of Geonosis.

The younger Fett was played by Daniel Logan in Attack of the Clones and The Clone Wars CGI animated series, but The Mandalorian takes place decades later, and a grown-up Boba would look identical to Jango.

However, Boba isn’t the only person with Jango’s face. Even though clone troopers were designed to age at an accelerated speed, some could still be alive. The Rebels series finale revealed that Commander Rex fought in Return of the Jedi’s Battle of Endor (a few years prior to the events of The Mandalorian), while Commander Wolffe survived until at least the end of Rebels (which took place years before A New Hope).

We saw a mysterious person approach assassin Fennec Shand’s body on Tatooine in the final moments of the fifth episode of season 1, with Fett’s trademark spur sound effect, and the sixth episode of season 2 revealed that it was indeed Boba. He saved her life, and she teamed up with him to repay the favor — she’ll also join him in The Book of Boba Fett spinoff series.

Fans of the Legends material (developed in novels, comics and games prior to 2014) will recall that Boba escaped the sarlacc in that continuity and went on to become the leader of Mandalore in a very different (and noncanon) post-Return of the Jedi galaxy. 

Other spinoffs

Ahsoka Tano, the former Padawan of the late Anakin Skywalker and star of CGI animated series The Clone Wars, made her live-action debut in season 2. She’s played by Rosario Dawson, as was reported earlier this year, whom you might remember playing Claire Temple in Netflix’s Marvel shows.  

Her spinoff series, Ahsoka, is coming to Disney Plus and will probably see her hunting for Grand Admiral Thrawn. The Imperial villain was last seen in the finale of animated series Rebels, which is set years before The Mandalorian, but we don’t know why Ahsoka is after him. This show’s release date is unclear — it’ll likely be 2022, since The Book of Boba Fett is coming in December 2021. 

There’s also Rangers of New Republic, an original series set within the timeline of The Mandalorian. We don’t have many details on it, but fans speculated initially that it’d feature Marshal Cara Dune. In February, Lucasfilm said Gina Carano, who played Cara in the first two seasons, will no longer be in The Mandalorian or future Star Wars projects — it’s currently unclear if the character will be recast. This one doesn’t have a release date either.

Upcoming animated series The Bad Batch isn’t explicitly tied to The Mandalorian since it’s set decades earlier in the timeline, between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, but it could reveal how the Mandalorians were kicked off Mandalore.

Read more: 30 best movies to watch on Disney Plus 

What about Baby Yoda?

This little guy captured everyone’s heart the moment he appeared in the first episode. We also learned that he was 50 years old and could use the Force, but we were well into season 2 before we learned anything else about him. 

In that season’s fifth episode, Ahsoka Tano communicated with him using the Force and discovered that his real name is Grogu. He was raised in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, before being hidden when the Empire wiped out the Jedi in Revenge of the Sith, and in the decades since, he’s suppressed his powers to stay off the bad guys’ radar.

The Imperial Remnant apparently wanted him so it can use his blood to create Force-strong beings. But it’s unclear if this is for Moff Gideon’s own ends, or if Gideon is knowingly working for the reborn Palpatine or unknowingly doing the hidden Emperor’s bidding.

He went with Luke Skywalker to be trained in the ways of the Force in the season 2 finale, but you just know he’ll be reunited with Mando at some point.

Oh, and the most detailed version of the puppet apparently cost around $5 million.

What happened in seasons 1 and 2?

You’re in luck! I wrote detailed recaps of each episode that you can use to catch up:

Season 1

Chapter 1: The Mandalorian

Chapter 2: The Child

Chapter 3: The Sin

Chapter 4: Sanctuary

Chapter 5: The Gunslinger

Chapter 6: The Prisoner

Chapter 7: The Reckoning

Chapter 8: Redemption

Season 2

Chapter 9: The Marshal

Chapter 10: The Passenger

Chapter 11: The Heiress

Chapter 12: The Siege

Chapter 13: The Jedi

Chapter 14: The Tragedy

Chapter 15: The Believer

Chapter 16: The Rescue

Is there a bounty of Mandalorian merch?

Merchandise hunting is a complicated hobby, but you know you want it. Since the show’s debut November 2021, a mountain of toys and other collectibles have been released. Highlights include Hasbro’s six-inch Black Series and Vintage Collection. 

There was a steady stream for season 2 as well, like Lego’s huge Baby Yoda set, Polaroid’s Mandalorian-themed instant camera and Hasbro’s crowd-funded Razor Crest. Lucasfilm revealed new collectibles each Monday during season 2’s run — a merchandising push known as “Mando Mondays.”

The coolest item revealed was probably the Force FX Elite Darksaber replica, which has a removable blade, a metallic hilt, makes excellent sound effects and comes with a lovely stand. It’ll set you back $250 and ships next August.

For gamers, Xbox revealed a fancy Mandalorian-themed controller. It’s pricey at $170, but will be compatible with Microsoft’s new Xbox Series X and S consoles.

Is there any tie-in literature?

As is Star Wars tradition, readers will be able to dive in further. A bunch of books were revealed on the official Star Wars site in June. The major ones are:

• The Art of The Mandalorian Season One by Phil Szostak.
• The Mandalorian tie-in novel (telling a new story) by Adam Christopher.
• The Mandalorian: The Ultimate Visual Guide by Pablo Hidalgo.

The novel has been delayed until fall 2021 (for $29). Marvel and IDW will also bring out comics inspired by the show.

“At the moment, we’re keeping things under wraps — including the title, synopsis, and cover,” Christopher wrote in a blog post about his novel. “But that does mean I get one of those cool and mysterious Cover Not Final placeholders.”

What’s the deal with the documentary?

Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian is an eight-episode making-of series that includes interviews with The Mandalorian’s cast and crew, new footage from the show’s production and round-table conversations hosted by Favreau. Here’s what they cover:

1. Directing
2. Legacy
3. Cast
4. Technology
5. Practical
6. Visualization
7. Score
8. Connections

The titles are pretty self-explanatory, aside from the second one. It looks at George Lucas’ continuing impact on Star Wars and features a pretty amazing monologue from director Dave Filoni, who worked directly with Lucas on The Clone Wars. He’ll make you think about The Phantom Menace in a whole new way.

The second season didn’t take the episodic approach for its behind the scenes feature — it was all stuffed into a one-hour special.

What’s a Mandalorian?

Mandalorians are humans from the Outer Rim world of Mandalore, its moon Concordia and the planet Kalevala, whose story was largely told in The Clone Wars and Rebels.

Their world went through major political upheaval during the Clone Wars and early days of the Galactic Empire’s rule, but many of the clans united under the rule of Bo-Katan Kryze after she took control of the Darksaber. The black-bladed weapon was created more than 1,000 years earlier by Tarre Vizsla (the first Mandalorian to join the Jedi Order) and became a symbol of leadership.

Who’s in the show?

Pedro Pascal (best known for playing Oberyn Martell in Game of Thrones) is the bounty hunter behind the helmet: He’s a lone Mandalorian gunfighter operating in the outer reaches of the galaxy.

He’s joined by a star-studded cast, though a couple of these characters didn’t survive:

• Gina Carano as ex-Rebel Alliance shock trooper Cara Dune 
• Carl Weathers as bounty hunter boss Greef Carga
• Giancarlo Esposito as Moff Gideon
• Omid Abtahi as Dr. Pershing
• Emily Swallow as the Mandalorian Armorer
• Katee Sackhoff as Bo-Katan Kryze
• Sasha Banks as Koska Reeves
• Simon Kassianides as Axe Woves
• Rosario Dawson as Ahsoka Tano
• Temuera Morrison as Boba Fett
• Ming-Na Wen as assassin Fennec Shand
• Paul Sun-Hyung Lee as Captain Carson Teva
• Bill Burr as sharpshooter Mayfield
• Natalia Tena as mercenary Xi’an
• Clancy Brown as mercenary Burg
• Julia Jones as villager Omera
• Amy Sedaris as mechanic Peli Motto
• Timothy Olyphant as marshall Cobb Vanth
• Diana Lee Inosanto as magistrate Morgan Elsbeth
• Nick Nolte as mechanic Kuiil (dead)
• Taika Waititi as assassin droid IG-11 (destroyed)
• Werner Herzog as the Imperial Client (dead)
• Richard Ayoade as droid Zero (destroyed)
• Ismael Cruz Cordova as criminal Qin (presumed dead)
• Mark Boone Jr. as Ranzar Malk (presumed dead)
• Jake Cannavale as rookie bounty hunter Toro Calican (dead)
• Michael Biehn as mercenary Lang (dead)

Who else is involved?

Directors for the first and second seasons include:

• Dave Filoni
• Rick Famuyiwa
• Deborah Chow
• Bryce Dallas Howard
• Taika Waititi
• Jon Favreau
• Carl Weathers
• Peyton Reed
• Robert Rodriguez

Favreau, Filoni, Colin Wilson and Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy are the executive producers, with Karen Gilchrist as co-executive producer.

The Mandalorian is among the first projects for ILM TV, a division of Lucasfilm’s Industrial Light & Magic visual effects company. The show’s soundtrack is composed by Ludwig Göransson, who scored Black Panther, Venom and Creed II. Göransson’s Black Panther score won him a Grammy and an Oscar in 2019.