The Mandalorian and Grogu Heads to Disney+ After a $345 Million Theatrical Run
Disney's first Star Wars film in seven years is heading to streaming. The company announced that The Mandalorian and Grogu will be available on Disney+ starting 2 September, capping a summer theatrical run that grossed $345 million worldwide (Variety).
Directed by Jon Favreau, who co-wrote the screenplay with Dave Filoni, the film premiered in cinemas on 22 May and opened at No. 1 globally over the Memorial Day weekend, earning $102 million in that frame alone (Variety; Disney). The production carried a budget of $165 million.
Those numbers, though solid for an original summer release, place the film at the bottom of the live-action Star Wars box-office table. It finished below Solo: A Star Wars Story, which managed $393 million in 2018 — a figure that was itself considered a disappointment for the franchise at the time (Variety). For context, the previous Star Wars film, The Rise of Skywalker (2019), grossed $1 billion globally.
The film bridges television and cinema in a way the franchise had not attempted before. Set after the third season of The Mandalorian and the first season of Ahsoka, it follows bounty hunter Din Djarin and his companion Grogu as they are recruited by Colonel Ward, played by Sigourney Weaver, to assist the New Republic. Pedro Pascal voices Djarin, with much of the physical performance handled by stunt performers Lateef Crowder and Brendan Wayne (Variety).
The cast carries a few surprises. Jeremy Allen White voices Rotta the Hutt, and Martin Scorsese appears in a guest role as a fry cook named Hugo Durant — a cameo that raised eyebrows when the credits rolled (Variety).
Behind the camera, the film arrives during a leadership transition at Lucasfilm. Filoni was promoted to president of the studio earlier in 2026, following Kathleen Kennedy's departure. He now oversees the franchise's creative direction alongside Favreau, who launched The Mandalorian as a streaming series in 2019 before expanding it to the big screen (Variety).
The next theatrical Star Wars release is already on the calendar. Star Wars: Starfighter, directed by Shawn Levy and starring Ryan Gosling, is scheduled to premiere on 28 May 2027 (Variety).
For subscribers who missed the theatrical window, the Disney+ release on 2 September offers a chance to catch up on where the Mandalorian and his small green companion stand in the wider galaxy — before the next chapter arrives.
