The Mandalorian is set to make the leap to cinemas with the upcoming film The Mandalorian & Grogu, but a recent statement from a Lucasfilm exec means that there’s still hope for the series to make a return on Disney+.

The Mandalorian marked the start of the Star Wars franchise’s streaming era, with the show’s instant success moving the franchise from its home on the big screen to Disney+. Many other projects would follow, and The Mandalorian itself would get two more seasons on the streamer as well as spin-offs in The Book of Boba Fett and Ahsoka. While fans were eager for a fourth season, rumors emerged alleging that the next installment would be a movie and that it would be the end of the series. This would be all but confirmed when Lucasfilm announced The Mandalorian & Grogu was in development for theatrical release, leading many longtime fans to decry the iconic show ending on another medium entirely.

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As production progressed, new rumors and reports would allege that The Mandalorian & Grogu wouldn’t end the show after all, and a potential fourth season was actually in development at Lucasfilm. This left some hope for fans that the show would return after the movie, but was largely unsubstantiated until now. In a recent interview with French entertainment news program BFMTV INSIDE clipped by lenicolasbehar on X, The Mandalorian creator and showrunner Jon Favreau discussed a fourth season of the show. “Season 4? Yeah, I’ve written it already. We have to know where we are going to tell a fully formed story. So, we had mapped it out, Dave [Filoni] and I. And then slowly you just write each episode. So I was writing it during post-production, because all of it has to feel like a continuation and one full story.” Favreau also discussed how the duo had to account for other projects and how they would affect the show and vice versa.

This is great news for fans, as it means that the season is written and likely doesn’t intersect with the story that the upcoming film is set to explore. This would make sense, as rumored plot details suggest that The Mandalorian & Grogu will retread some plot points from The Clone Wars animated series. While the show was a fan favorite and the film could definitely be great, this doesn’t sound much like a great end point for either of the show’s main characters or their journey together. While a massive payday could be a great way to ride into the sunset, fans of the show will certainly want more. As for the film itself, a lot is riding on it thanks to the popularity of the characters and one unexpected detail. Likely thanks in part to other projects facing delays or being canned, The Mandalorian & Grogu will also inadvertently mark the franchise’s return to the big screen following the divisive sequel trilogy and its spinoffs, which is likely pressure that the creative team didn’t foresee coming at the initial stages. Fans will just have to trust that the film will live up to lofty expectations when it hits theaters.

If it does actually become official, The Mandalorian season 4 should end the series as many fans originally suggested. The show has had a good run, but the main characters have been explored a lot throughout the three seasons, as well as The Book of Boba Fett. It’s hard to imagine that there’ll be much more left to explore after a feature-length film that the creative team couldn’t finish in one more season, and the franchise could move on to other things. The return to the big screen is long overdue, and while the characters can appear in other projects, The Mandalorian doesn’t need to stay on into the new era.

The Mandalorian is available to stream on Disney+, with The Mandalorian & Grogu set for theatrical release on May 22, 2026.

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Source: lenicolasbehar/X