As we all know, the Star Wars Celebration event provided fans all around the world with plenty of good news on the Star Wars projects that are coming our way through Disney+. Among news from Ahsoka, Andor, and most recently Star Wars: Visions, we also got some good info on the upcoming Season 3 of fan-favorite series The Mandalorian. During the event, Collider's Arezou Amin had the chance to speak with series star Carl Weathers, who teased what’s coming ahead. The series is set to premiere in February 2023.
Weathers had previously announced that, once again, he’s sitting on the director’s chair to helm at least one more episode of the series. Back in Season 2, the actor/director held the reins of episode “The Siege”, which centered around planet Nevarro and is considered one of the best in the series so far.
In looking ahead to Season 3, Weathers said that his experiences directing on the second season really helped when it came time to get back in the director's chair, saying that having that experience under his belt came in handy, not just in the working relationship with Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni, but in how the material has become even better between seasons. According to Weathers, the story itself has grown, with the new characters and the "bells and whistles" of Star Wars storytelling making it enjoyable as both actor and director.
When asked about what it felt like to be part of a legacy universe like Star Wars, Weathers called it an experience unlike any other. In his view, the real challenge comes from trying to make sure people immerse themselves in the world so they forget they're watching fiction. He said:
"[w]hen you have a brand, really, like Star Wars [...] you have such awareness of it, and you have such rabid fans who know so much about it, the challenge is how can you keep it fresh? How can you keep it exciting? How can you hopefully build on what's there and get even more entertainment, because there are no surprises for people. They've seen so much."
The Mandalorian panel hosted by series co-creators Favreau and Filoni confirmed the return of Bo-Katan Kryze, with the special guest appearance by Katee Sackhoff herself. The panel also provided an event-exclusive first-look that teased the arcs from Season 3, which centers around Din Djarin’s (Pedro Pascal) journey of forgiveness after the removal of his helmet, as well as his reunion with the Armorer (Emily Swallow).
Across its first two seasons, The Mandalorian easily became a fan-favorite title in the Star Wars universe by using a western-like approach to the story that fans missed. The series is also constantly praised by critics, having won a whopping amount of 14 Emmys so far. Weathers’ character Greef Karga is an important part of the show’s popularity, with his partnership/friendship with the tile character praised as one of the series’ high points.
The series debuted on Disney+ in November 2019 as the first-ever live-action Star Wars-related series. The show’s popularity prompted the streamer to order a slate of new series, including Obi-Wan Kenobi (which premiered last week), The Book of Boba Fett, and the upcoming Ahsoka, Andor, and Star Wars: Skeleton Crew.
Disney+ premieres Season 3 of The Mandalorian in February 2023.