‘The Mandalorian & Grogu’ Is the Cheapest ‘Star Wars’ Film in Disney Era

A new report about The Mandalorian & Grogu reveals its budget, and while it costs more than a lot of movies, it is certainly cheap by Disney Star Wars standards. The cost of movie tickets has certainly been on people’s minds for years, but the price to make movies seemingly has gone up. 2023 saw three films (Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, and Fast X) join the ranks of the most expensive movies ever made. Now, in 2025, Netflix’s The Electric State and Apple’s F1 will be added to that list. While Star Wars is one of the biggest franchises around, it sounds like the next entry is being budgeted responsibly.

According to Collider, The Mandalorian & Grogu reportedly has a budget of $166.4 million, based on a report from the California Film Commission. The latest entry in the Star Wars franchise was the recipient of a bountiful tax credit from the state of California to the tune of $21.75 million. This makes The Mandalorian & Grogu the cheapest Star Wars film since Disney acquired the franchise in 2012 and the first franchise title not to have a budget in the $200 million range since Revenge of the Sith back in 2005.

How ‘The Mandalorian & Grogu’ Stacks up Against Other ‘Star Wars’ Films

While $166.4 million certainly isn’t cheap, it is also far less than what Disney has spent on the rest of their Star Wars film library. Here is a breakdown of the cost of previous Star Wars films, including the non-Disney era.

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The budget for the various Disney Star Wars films has fluctuated over the years, but a report by Forbes in 2023 suggested that The Force Awakens was the most expensive film of all time. Disney has clearly spent a lot of money on the Star Wars franchise, as it has been a crown jewel in their slate of programming since they acquired Lucasfilm in 2012 for $4 billion. Does The Mandalorian & Grogu show that Disney is cheapening out on the next Star Wars film, or has the production just been better funded than other entries in the franchise?

The Mandalorian & Grogu has avoided a lot of behind-the-scenes issues that have plagued other Star Wars productions. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is Disney’s second-cheapest Star Wars entry, and that film still underwent a significant round of reshoots. Meanwhile, The Mandalorian & Grogu is also the first Star Wars film not to be filmed primarily in London, as production has been underway in Los Angeles on soundstages using the volume in contrast to much of the on-location shooting in previous installments.

While Star Wars is still an extremely popular brand, there might be concerns at Disney about the franchise’s box office potential. A smaller budgeted film increases the profit potential and mitigates some risk. Jon Favreau certainly is the right man for that task, as his $140 million budget for Iron Man launched one of the most successful franchises in cinema history. The most expensive movie Favreau has directed is 2019’s The Lion King, which reportedly cost up to $250 million to produce (and that film made over a billion). The Mandalorian & Grogu sits comfortably between the cost of 2016’s The Jungle Book ($177 million) and 2011’s Cowboys & Aliens ($163 million) in terms of Favreau’s filmography. Maybe a $164 million budgeted Star Wars is a reasonable price.

Source: Collider / Forbes