Credit: LucasfilmNew numbers may have shed light on Lucasfilm’s decision to give The Mandalorian the movie treatment.
Last month, it was announced that The Mandalorian & Grogu will be the next Star Wars film to hit the big screen – coming before the planned fourth season of The Mandalorian.
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Now, a report from Bespin Bulletin has claimed that filming will run from June to October, making it a four-month-long shoot.
In comparison, principal photography for the third season of The Mandalorian ran from September 2021 to March 2022 – two months longer than the planned dates for The Mandalorian & Grogu. Bespin Bulletin notes that the film’s budget will, therefore, be considerably lower than that of the average season of The Mandalorian on Disney+.
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With The Mandalorian season one reportedly costing $120 million (and subsequent seasons most likely costing more), that would put the film’s budget south of that number. That’s considerably cheaper than past cinematic Star Wars outings. For example, Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (2019) set Lucasfilm back $416 million, while its predecessor, Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi (2017), cost $300 million.
Despite director Jon Favreau revealing that scripts were already written for season four of The Mandalorian, Disney and Lucasfilm reportedly made the decision to shift Mando’s story to theaters during the Writer’s Strike as they reconsidered their priorities for the Star Wars universe. (Whether or not this decision also involves axing season four completely remains to be seen).
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While an official explanation has never been given as to why those priorities involved a movie outing for The Mandalorian, AKA Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal), these numbers definitely play a part in justifying the decision. Disney+ hasn’t exactly been the most successful of services recently, and it’s been a much-discussed fact among industry experts recently that the best way for services to maximize their profits is to cycle releases through theaters then streaming.
If a cinematic release has the potential to not only be more profitable but also cost less to produce, then The Mandalorian & Grogu seems like the obvious choice.
Would you prefer a fourth season of The Mandalorian or the release of The Mandalorian & Grogu in theaters? Let us know in the comments!