Original plans called for The Mandalorian to return to Disney+ for a fourth season. However, looking to course correct after Disney CEO Bob Chapek's massive streaming spend, Bob Iger started shifting the company's focus back to theatrical titles.
A Moana animated series became Moana 2 (a move that paid off, seeing as it grossed over $1 billion worldwide), and The Mandalorian Season 4 evolved into The Mandalorian and Grogu.
Set for release this May, there's a lot of excitement to see how Din Djarin and The Child fare on the big screen. And, while filmmaker Jon Favreau has condensed 8 episodes into a feature, it sounds like we're still getting a suitably epic adventure.
As we first reported on SFFGazette.com, UK cinema chain Odeon has updated its site to state that The Mandalorian and Grogu's current runtime is 2 hours and 20 minutes. This is in the same ballpark as most Star Wars movies, with The Last Jedi still the longest at 2 hours and 32 minutes.
Bespin Bulletin, meanwhile, is reporting that a new behind-the-scenes look at The Mandalorian and Grogu is currently playing on IMAX screens in the UK. Here's a description from the site:
"Some of the new content includes Din Djarin walking down a dark urban street at night and Din, without his helmet, with water up to his neck inside of a cave. New shots of the AT-AT seen on the snow planet from the trailers and Zeb, the fan favourite character from Star Wars: Rebels, is seen walking with Din Djarin in a desert."
"There’s brief interview snippets from Pedro Pascal and Jon Favreau intercut between the footage. They emphasise The Mandalorian and Grogu is the spirit of the original trilogy and showcases practical effects used in the film as behind the scenes of the original trilogy with George Lucas shown alongside the footage."
Recently, The Mandalorian star Temuera Morrison revealed that he received some pushback for telling fans to "send a fax, or a letter or an email" to Lucasfilm demanding Fett's return last year.
"I was only joking. I’m at a convention, and I say stupid things," the actor shared. "Then I’ve got [Lucasfilm] ringing me: 'Look, you’ve been put on the shelf, Boba Fett. We might open up the jar later.'"
As of now, it doesn't look like that will be in The Mandalorian and Grogu, even with a lengthy 2 hours and 20 minutes runtime. This likely means Timothy Olyphant's Cobb Vanth is also on the shelf after his return was teased at the end of The Book of Boba Fett.
In The Mandalorian and Grogu, the evil Empire has fallen, and Imperial warlords remain scattered throughout the galaxy. As the fledgling New Republic works to protect everything the Rebellion fought for, they have enlisted the help of legendary Mandalorian bounty hunter Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and his young apprentice Grogu.
Directed by Jon Favreau, the movie also stars Sigourney Weaver and Jeremy Allen White and is produced by Jon Favreau, Kathleen Kennedy, Dave Filoni, and Ian Bryce, with music composed by Ludwig Göransson.
The Mandalorian and Grogu arrives in theaters on May 22.