The second season of The Mandalorian has been highly-anticipated by Star Wars fans everywhere ever since Disney+ series' Season 1 finale ended on a major cliffhanger as well as the promise of more Mando and Baby Yoda bonding. Now, with much of the entertainment industry struggling with production shutdowns that forced halts on TV and film projects large and small, more Mandalorian is likely more appealing than ever. Reports indicated that the show would return for its second season in October 2020, and now executive producer Jon Favreau has come out to confirm and explain the date:
We were lucky enough to have finished photography before the lockdown, so thanks to how technology-forward Lucasfilm and ILM are, we've been able to do all the editing visual effects remotely... It will be available as planned on Disney+ in October. It will be building on hopefully what people loved from the first season. It doesn't feel like the next season, it feels like work continuing... I hope people are having as much seeing it as we are having making it.
According to Jon Favreau at the ATX TV Festival (via ComicBook.com), The Mandalorian did indeed finish photography before the production halts throughout the entertainment industry, so reports that filming had completed proved to be accurate. He also revealed that it's thanks to Lucasfilm and ILM (Industrial Light & Magic) that the footage for Season 2 can be completed remotely, effects and all. Unfinished special effects are what stopped both The Walking Dead and Supernatural from airing episodes despite concluded filming; The Mandalorian evidently has more remote capabilities thanks to Lucasfilm and ILM.
Jon Favreau's comments also echo those of Disney head honcho Bob Chapek, who promised no delays on The Mandalorian Season 2. That said, the confirmation and explanation coming from The Mandalorian boss himself should help any anxious fans feel better about the October premiere. All things considered, we should probably all be grateful that The Mandalorian already began filming Season 2 before Season 1 even premiered! That October premiere might not have been doable if The Mandalorian had waited until Season 1 launched in November 2019 to begin production on Season 2.
In fact, the turnaround of Season 2 premiering less than a year after Season 1 is pretty remarkable, considering how cinematic The Mandalorian is as a live-action Star Wars TV show. The only bad news is that the wait for Season 3, assuming Disney doesn't for some reason pull the plug after Season 2, might be much longer than 11 months or so. Still, at least we have Season 2 guaranteed before the end of 2020! Jon Favreau (who has also shared how Iron Man reshoots influenced Mandalorian production) didn't narrow down the October premiere to a specific date, so we'll have to wait and see on that front.
For now, we can always spend the next several months speculating about what's in store with The Mandalorian Season 2. Will Boba Fett really appear, despite his apparent death in Return of the Jedi? Will Pedro Pascal be the man behind the mask more than in Season 1? Will Mando run into problems with Baby Yoda other than his overwhelming cuteness?
While you wait for Season 2 of The Mandalorian to hit Disney+ in October, you can find plenty of additional Star Wars content on the streamer, including the latest season of The Clone Wars and much more. For more options set elsewhere than the galaxy far, far away, check out our 2020 summer premiere schedule.
