The first Mandalorian & Grogu trailer has arrived, and it wastes no time setting up an unlikely conflict: Grogu, the galaxy’s most beloved Force-sensitive infant, facing a chorus of Anzellan creatures who have reached a firm consensus about him. Their verdict is “A horrible baby” and “That’s a bad baby.” The film does not appear to share their view.
The Anzellans are the small, wrinkled aliens introduced to live-action Star Wars through Babu Frik in The Rise of Skywalker. That 2019 cameo ran barely a minute, but the character became one of the film’s most quoted additions, largely because of the contrast between his tiny size and his outsized confidence. Bringing the species back as recurring foils to Grogu plays directly into that dynamic.
What the Mandalorian & Grogu trailer shows
The trailer goes well beyond the Anzellan showdown. Several characters from the Star Wars animated series appear in live-action form, including Rotta the Hutt, Zeb from Star Wars Rebels, and bounty hunter Embo, whose wide-brimmed hat and fighting style debuted in The Clone Wars. Director Jon Favreau has spoken about wanting the film to bring the animated and live-action threads of Star Wars together, and the trailer makes clear that approach extends to the cast.
Pedro Pascal returns as Din Djarin, the armored Mandalorian who has served as Grogu’s protector since the show premiered on Disney+ in November 2019. Sigourney Weaver joins the cast as Colonel Ward, a new character whose role the trailer does not fully explain.
Star Wars returns to theaters
The Mandalorian & Grogu is the first theatrical Star Wars film since The Rise of Skywalker in December 2019, and the first to originate from Disney+’s streaming side of the franchise. When The Mandalorian launched alongside Disney+ in November 2019, it became the service’s flagship property almost immediately, driven mainly by Grogu, then nicknamed Baby Yoda by fans before Lucasfilm confirmed his name.
The series started as a contained space Western and gradually expanded into a wider story covering Grogu’s history as a youngling who survived Order 66, his Force training, and his relationship with Din Djarin, a foundling raised under the strict Creed of Mandalorian culture. A theatrical release is the next logical step for a property that built its recent audience entirely through streaming.
The Anzellan species in Star Wars
Babu Frik’s original appearance in The Rise of Skywalker was brief, but the character developed a following online that outlasted the film’s mixed reception. The Anzellan species now returns with a more prominent role, set up as comic foils to Grogu. Whether the creatures serve a broader plot function or appear mainly as recurring gags remains unclear from what the trailer shows.
The Mandalorian & Grogu opens in theaters on May 22, 2026.