Pedro Pascal Steps Away From Mandalorian Suit, “Wasn’t up for the Task”

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Mando holding the child

Credit: Lucasfilm and Disney

For four years, Pedro Pascal has taken on the mantle of the Mandalorian – the lone bounty hunter tasked with protecting Grogu, known to most audiences as “Baby Yoda.”

One of the key qualities of a Mandalorian in the Star Wars universe is that they do not show their face to others under any circumstance.

Pedro Pascal as Din Djarin and Paul Sun-Hyung Lee as Carson Teva in The Mandalorian
Credit: Lucasfilm

Din Djarin – the real name of the show’s eponymous Mandalorian – follows the same creed. For the most part, at least. Throughout most of The Mandalorian, his character remains fully suited in metal armor, apart from three occasions.

The first came in season one when he removed his helmet to allow the droid IG-11 to heal him in battle. The second occasion came in season two when he’s forced to remove his helmet while disguised as a soldier to perform a facial scan. At the end of the same season, Mando removes his helmet for a third time to say a proper goodbye to Grogu as he departs for Jedi training with Luke Skywalker.

(L-R): Grogu, Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and Paz Vizsla (Tait Fletcher) in Lucasfilm's THE MANDALORIAN, season three, exclusively on Disney+. ©2023 Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM. All Rights Reserved.
Credit: Lucasfilm

These are the only times we see Pedro Pascal’s face in the show, with the actor remaining masked for the majority of shots. However, he’s now confirmed that while he did attempt to wear the suit, it’s now rarely him in the Mandalorian suit on set.

In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Pascal confirmed that for “a lot” of The Mandalorian, somebody else now performs most of Mando’s physical movements while he provides a voiceover.

“There was an extended amount of experimentation, being in the suit for a lot of it,” he explained. “Frankly, my body wasn’t up for the task as far as, like, the four months of it. But I was in it. I was in it a significant amount, an elastic amount. But now we’ve figured it out, which is super cool.”

Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) with Grogu in 'The Mandalorian' (2019) "Chapter 17 - The Apostate". Credit: Lucasfilm
Credit: Lucasfilm

He went on to explain that stepping away from physically portraying the Mandalorian allows him to go away and pursue other projects during the show’s production. Pascal also denied ever scrutinizing his stand-in’s movements as Mando, admitting that “there are things that you have to let go of in terms of what can be an OCD level of attention to detail.”

A planned fourth face reveal for Mando was scrapped from the season three finale. However, with a fourth season set to start production when the Writers Strike ends, it seems inevitable that we’ll see Pascal’s face in a Star Wars setting again at some point.

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