The Mandalorian And Grogu Officially Kept One Star Wars Tradition Alive That Improved Over 7 Years

The Mandalorian & Grogu may have been the title protagonists’ first time on the big screen, but there’s one improved tradition that was important to retain from their televised adventures.

When The Mandalorian premiered on Disney+ in 2019, Grogu’s introduction was the first episode’s ending twist, giving the public their first look at an infant member of Yoda’s species. Although there are times when CGI is necessary for the adorable character, for the most part, Grogu is depicted practically. The new Star Wars movie’s visual effects team and director Jon Favreau were determined to keep that element of the character intact.

In an interview with Variety, John Knoll, The Mandalorian & Grogu’s visual effects supervisor, detailed the work that went into bringing Grogu to life this time around. That included using the Grogu puppet for nearly every scene, which was decided on during preproduction. Knoll said he and his team “[t]ry and do it with a puppet anywhere we can.”

Five puppeteers were usually required to make this happen. One controls the rods for Grogu’s legs, one handles the head and central body, and the rest are charged with the ears, eyes, and facial expressions through joysticks. There were also five puppets used for Grogu built by Legacy Effects: “two hero puppets, one stunt puppet, a fully submergible waterproof option and one self-contained version.”

Though Grogu's jumping around and some of his facial expressions required the use of CGI, The Mandalorian & Grogu prioritized the practical approach with the little Force user whenever possible. Among those instances is when Grogu is hanging standing on the back of Din Djarin’s shoulder and frantically tapping on his helmet. However, that emphasis on puppeteering required additional post-production work to remove Grogu’s operators from many scenes.

Grogu was originally only officially known as The Child when he debuted in The Mandalorian, while audiences affectionately nicknamed him Baby Yoda. Seven years later, he’s maintained his position as one of the most popular characters from Star Wars’ Disney era. Both he and Djarin also appeared in The Book of Boba Fett, which took place between The Mandalorian’s second and third seasons.

The Mandalorian & Grogu follows the two protagonists being enlisted by the New Republic's Colonel Ward, played by Sigourney Weaver, to track down and rescue Jeremy Allen White’s Rotta the Hutt in exchange for information about a wanted Imperial warlord. Pedro Pascal reprised Djarin, with Brendan Wayne and Lateef Crowder serving as the character’s on-set doubles.

A week into its theatrical run, the first Star Wars movie released since 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker has earned mixed critical reception. ScreenRant’s review of The Mandalorian & Grogu rated it 7 out of 10 stars and said it’s “genuinely delightful to watch.” Commercially, it’s made over $181 million worldwide. Though their next appearance hasn’t been announced yet, Favreau has said that Djarin and Grogu’s future is a “wide open canvas.”

Next up on the upcoming Star Wars movies slate following The Mandalorian & Grogu is the Ryan Gosling-led Starfighter, which opens in theaters on May 28, 2027. Next year will also see the release of Ahsoka season 2 on Disney+.