• Action-heavy sizzle reel screened to audience in Tokyo
  • Pedro Pascal was joined by an animatronic Grogu at the event 
  • Star Wars fans divided after seeing footage 
The Mandalorian and Grogu
The Mandalorian and Grogu Credit: Imago

Baby Yoda’s big screen debut is edging closer! Lucasfilm and Disney revealed a first look at The Mandalorian & Grogu movie during  the Star Wars Celebration in Tokyo on Friday.

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Director Jon Favreau and co-writer Dave Filoni, joined by Pedro Pascal and Sigourney Weaver, took to the stage to tease what’s in store for fans in the first Star Wars adventure in six years. The Mandalorian & Grogu hits cinemas on 22 May 2026.

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Special guests in the form of an animatronic Grogu and several BDX droids from Disney’s Galaxy’s Edge – the Star Wars-themed area at Disneyland – also made an appearance during the biennial event.

Sizzle reel

An action-packed sizzle reel shown exclusively to the audience featured an AT-AT preparing for battle, before the Mandalorian (Pascal) slices into its hull and fights his way to the cockpit – blasting and stabbing snowtroopers in a brutal one-shot sequence.

Sigourney Weaver’s mystery character appears, speaking to Mando & Grogu, commenting on Mando’s “messy” handiwork and reminding him he works for her. 

Other highlights included high-flying battle scenes, Grogu using the Force and swimming underwater, and a first glimpse of Jeremy Allen White as Rotta the Hutt – crime lord Jabba the Hutt’s son – appearing in a gladiator-style arena.

And of course, there was a classic Grogu moment. The reel wrapped up with a shot of him sitting in the stands of the fighting arena, munching on what looked like the Star Wars version of red popcorn.

Favreau also shared behind-the-scenes images, including Pascal without his helmet on, and Mando and Grogu riding a snowspeeder.

Star Wars fan reaction divided

As soon as the new Mandalorian & Grogu footage dropped, fans across the galaxy (and social media) reacted with a mix of excitement and doubt over the franchise’s latest movie installment.

Grogu received plenty of love from fans, with one user commenting on X, “Gonna be great to see Grogu again,” and another, clearly thrilled to see Grogu underwater, adding, “Grogu can swim. Yes yes yes.”

Others took the chance to flood the thread with Grogu GIFs to show their appreciation.

Other fans expressed their excitement, with one saying,“Can’t wait!!! It’s going to be amazing 🤩” and another adding, “I’m going to watch this like 70times 🤣in the theater”.

However, the exclusive footage hasn’t been universally well-received, with some fans expressing disappointment over the film’s title, while others voiced frustration with Pedro Pascal, more broadly, criticized Disney and Lucasfilm for their recent Star Wars efforts.

“How do I block Star Wars as a topic on X? After what Disney did to Star Wars, I’ll never watch anything connected to it ever again. May this and all future Star Wars projects fail,” wrote one disgruntled fan.

Another added, “…they really aren’t going to change this absolutely awful movie title are they? 🤔😶” while others piled on with quips like, “It’s not too late to change that title,” and “You’re so lost you’re putting character names in titles.” One user summed it up with, “On the count of three, we all say cash grab. 1…2…3,” while another chimed in, “Y’all managed to make Star Wars corporate, bruh.”

Pedro Pascal also took some heat. “Is he the only actor in Hollywood these days?” one user asked sarcastically. Another joked, “Why is this dude everywhere? I’m starting to think he’s a genuine clone.” One especially blunt comment read, “So over seeing this low T actor everywhere.”

To be fair, Pascal has starred in The Mandalorian series since 2019, so the backlash feels like something of an overreaction. That said, he’s also set to star as Mister Fantastic in Avengers: Doomsday, due out the same month as The Mandalorian & Grogu – May 2026.

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Harvey Aspell
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