With the second season of The Mandalorian set to arrive on Disney+ at the end of the month, executive producer Jon Favreau is already looking ahead to season three. In fact, filming will begin on season three before the end of the year.
Favreau confirmed the progress on the third season to Variety. “We’re operating under the assumption that we’ll be able to go forward,” Favreau said. Favreau also noted the unique filming situation that the show works within. Utilizing the wall-sized screen technology, it puts the show in a good place to adapt to health and safety protocols.
“We’re in very small situations and oftentimes we have a lot of characters in masks,” he said. “And we also have a lot of digital work that augments things. So we’re a show that’s probably well-equipped to be flexible based on the protocols that are emerging surrounding work restarting.”
The third season of The Mandalorian getting started with filming shouldn’t come as too surprising. Earlier this year, Disney Chairman Bob Iger shared that there were future seasons of The Mandalorian that would have “the possibility of infusing [the show] with more characters and the possibility of taking those characters in their own direction in terms of series.”
Favreau recently shared on the thought of expanding the Star Wars universe in a measured tone.
“I love the world of ‘Star Wars’ because, on the one hand, there’s a familiarity with this sub-genre, but there’s also a tremendous amount of flexibility of which way you can go and genres you could explore within that sub-genre,” Favreau said. “As we’re meeting new characters, and as we’re starting to hit our stride, from a production standpoint with how this technology can be used, we are beginning to explore where we could go.”
Favreau acknowledged that the medium of television on Disney+ does allow for more mobility and flexibility for growth saying, “And we could start to expand what we’re doing and our ambitions about what characters we want to follow.”
The development of intertwined stories within a universe is no new experience for Favreau who directed Iron Man, effectively kicking off the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
“I learned a lot from my experience over at Marvel, where it was very organic, how it would evolve,” he said. “You’re paying attention to a larger story arcs and characters that could come together, but also smaller stories of individual characters that could go off [on their own thing]. The key here is keep maintaining the quality and never scaling to the point that we’re losing sight of what’s important to us and what people like about the show.”
Favreau also shared about the increasingly blurry line between theatrical releases and Disney+.
“The line is blurring now,” said Favreau. “Things that you would have only seen in the movie theater, you’re seeing on streaming, and I think it could go the other way as well.”
Does this mean that The Mandalorian could be heading to the big screen? Not necessarily at this point. Favreau shared that he is in “no rush” for that at this point “But we’re definitely open to it,” he added, “and excited to see where the story leads us and have that flexibility — because there’s no rulebook now.”
The Mandalorian star Pedro Pascal has also indicated that he would love to see the show make the jump to the big screen but hasn’t heard any discussions about that happening at this point.
What do you think about The Mandalorian starting filming on season three before the end of the year? Would you like to see the show make the leap to the big screen in the future? What other characters from the Star Wars universe would you like to see appear on the show? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
