The ‘Star Wars’ Mandoverse Crossover Movie Has Tragically Missed Its Window

In December 2020, during the Disney Investor Day call, a flurry of projects was announced across Disney divisions, including Marvel Studios, Walt Disney Animation, Pixar, and, of course, Lucasfilm. One of the most interesting titles in the Star Wars universe was a plan for a culmination event team-up film in the vein of Marvel’s The Avengers. The film project would cross over The Mandalorian, Ahsoka, The Book of Boba Fett (announced after Disney Investor Day), and the now-canceled Rangers of the New Republic, whose slot was taken by Skeleton Crew.

When the proposed crossover of what fans call The Mandoverse (the overlapping Disney+ series set in the aftermath of Return of the Jedi) was announced, fans were excited, as the high from The Mandalorian and the Disney+ era of series was still strong. However, in the six years since, there is still no word on when the crossover film will arrive. Worse, the reaction to projects like The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka, and The Mandalorian Season 3 has dampened any enthusiasm. Rumors have spread that the project, originally conceived as a feature film, will be retooled into a Disney+ series, which is surprising given that The Mandalorian and Grogu are set to be released in theaters. It certainly feels like the time to make this crossover project has passed, and if it ever arrives, it will have missed its moment of relevance.

The Thrawn/Mandoverse Event Film is Too Late

Grand Admiral Thrawn

Disney+

It became clear early on that Dave Filoni, Jon Favreau, and the rest of the creative team at Lucasfilm were using the 32-year gap between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens to tell a canon adaptation of the famous Star Wars Legends Thrawn trilogy of novels, the original follow-ups to Return of the Jedi that many fans fell in love with. This way, the Star Wars franchise could still have a version of The Thrawn trilogy, with The Mandalorian, Ahsoka Tano, Boba Fett, and Rebels characters in place of Luke, Han, and Leia. This would create an in-continuity second “sequel” trilogy, one that adapted a famous story while also keeping the $4 billion globally grossing sequel trilogy in canon. It was a win-win for everyone.

In 2020, the idea of a grand epic series crossing over various titles of Disney+ Star Wars canon sounded exciting, particularly when it became clear that Admiral Thrawn would be the central antagonist. It was going to be the Star Wars version of The Avengers. Yet now in 2026, that idea sounds tiresome. The issue wasn’t so much the story (though it is clear that Thrawn is not as compelling a villain as some might expect) as how long it has taken to deliver. It has been seven years since The Mandalorian debuted and six years since the crossover film was announced, and fans are no closer to the announced crossover’s release.

When comparing similar long-term franchises, the typical wait for a culmination event is four to six years. The Avengers arrived four years after the release of Iron Man, and, except for 2009, Marvel Studios released at least one film each year in the buildup to maintain momentum. While the DCEU may have rushed Justice League, it still took four years to release the film after Man of Steel. The Star Wars sequel trilogy spanned four years, while the original and prequel trilogies were completed in six years.

Harry Potter might have run for ten years, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Infinity Saga for 11, but those franchises’ stories would release installments in a short amount of time. The longest gap in the Harry Potter franchise was two years. For reference, that is longer than the release of The Mandalorian Season 3 and the upcoming feature film, or the two seasons of Ahsoka.

The earliest the potential crossover film could possibly arrive is 2028, which would be over eight years since the announcement. With no release date set and the project now seemingly depending on the success of The Mandalorian and Grogu, it could be 2029 or 2030, if it happens at all. That is a significant gap, made worse by the long intervals between series across seasons, which only compounds the issue.

If Disney and Lucasfilm wanted to strike while the iron was hot, the crossover film should have been released in 2024, four years after the initial announcement. This likely would have meant Skeleton Crew would not be part of the larger story, as it debuted in December 2024, but so far, that series is more standalone and has fewer obvious connections to the larger story being told in The Mandoverse. By that point, the Disney+ series had lost some momentum in critical reception, but it would still be fresh in audiences’ minds.

The other alternative would have been to release The Mandalorian Season 4 in 2025, using the season to bring various plot points together as a lead-in to the crossover feature film, and releasing the Mandoverse movie on May 22, 2026, the date currently given to The Mandalorian and Grogu. Disney instead opted to scrap The Mandalorian Season 4 and instead convert it into the upcoming feature film. This decision has now only delayed the crossover film even longer.

Why Did Disney Choose ‘The Mandalorian and Grogu’ Instead of the Crossover Film?

In January 2024, following a slew of box office flops in 2023 like The Marvels, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Haunted Mansion, and Wish, Disney decided to go big on sure things. The first was that it announced The Mandalorian and Grogu, a feature film adaptation of one of their most popular Disney+ series and arguably the two breakout (and highly merchandisable) Star Wars characters. The following month, Disney announced that Moana 2 would be released in November.

For both The Mandalorian and Grogu and Moana 2, Disney took plans for Disney+ seasons and converted them into feature films. Moana 2 was literal: it used completed episodes of the Moana Disney+ series and reconfigured them into a film. Meanwhile, The Mandalorian Season 4 scripts were scrapped in favor of a feature film.

From a business standpoint, it makes sense why Disney and Lucasfilm would want a movie centered on The Mandalorian and Grogu. It feels like a safe bet for the franchise’s big cinematic return after the divisive reaction to The Rise of Skywalker and the brand’s growing ambivalence. Kids love Grogu, and putting him in a feature film draws a lot of attention. Recently departed Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy seemed to imply that The Mandalorian and Grogu were picked as the first Star Wars film because Disney higher-ups wanted something “safe.” Yet if Disney wanted a Star Wars movie with The Mandalorian and Grogu in the lead roles, why not move forward with the already announced crossover film?

Bringing in characters from The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka, and Skeleton Crew would have solved the main issue facing The Mandalorian and Grogu: it does not feel cinematic enough. Based on the one teaser trailer, The Mandalorian and Grogu looks like a glorified season of television being released in theaters. Nothing stands out that screams, “See this on the big screen,” despite so much publicity highlighting seeing it in IMAX. However, a film with The Mandalorian, Grogu, Boba Fett, Ahsoka, and the kids from Skeleton Crew would feel like something epic that only the big screen could deliver on.

To make matters even more frustrating, Lucasfilm appears to be taking a backwards approach to building out the brand. If Lucasfilm and Disney were to scrap The Mandalorian Season 4 in favor of a feature film, the natural idea was to use it as the first film in a new trilogy, with two sequels that could expand on the crossover Dave Filoni had in mind. That way, Disney could have a new Star Wars trilogy of movies centered on their popular new character, The Mandalorian. That doesn’t seem to be the plan, if there is one.

Instead, rumors have circulated that the planned crossover film has been retooled into a television series. So a series of television shows (The Mandalorian Season 4) was turned into a movie (The Mandalorian and Grogu), while a movie was changed into a series of television shows. The Mandalorian’s big cinematic glow-up will be followed up not by a sequel, but by another television series. This isn’t a matter of television being inferior to film, but a whiplash in storytelling that highlights Lucasfilm being far too reactive. This isn’t just adjusting a plan because a story calls for it; it’s making decisions based on finances rather than the story.

Now it seems like the crossover will happen, no matter what, because Dave Filoni has been named co-president of Lucasfilm. He clearly has a lot invested in this story and will likely make it a top priority, as he was originally set to direct the crossover film. But the moment has passed. The franchise needs to move on to new story eras, such as James Mangold’s Dawn of the Jedi, the Rey-led New Jedi Order film, or even the scrapped Hunt for Ben Solo. The idea of a team-up film among the various Disney+ series sounds like it would have been an entertaining experience in 2022. But the long wait, disappointing entries in the build-up to the larger story, and the uncertain future of Star Wars have taken the fun right out of it.