The Mandalorian & Grogu Panel at Star Wars Celebration Japan - Everything We Know So Far About Upcoming Star Wars Movies
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Star Wars Celebration Japan has begun! The first panel of the celebration was The Mandalorian & Grogu Panel, taking place on the Celebration Stage on April 18th. The panel was hosted by Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau with additional special guests. While the panel shared more details for the upcoming Star Wars movie, The Mandalorian & Grogu, it also announced a new Shawn Levy Star Wars film plus six additional movies in development. For all upcoming Star Wars projects for film and tv, check out this post!
Though we’re not in Japan, we’ll be keeping up with all the news at home and watching the LIVE presentation. We will be updating this post all weekend with updates, news, and announcements from the panels. Scroll down for more details on The Mandalorian & Grogu panel and stay tuned for more!
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LIVE Updates from Star Wars Celebration Japan - We’re updating this post with all the news, panels, and more
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Star Wars Celebration Japan
The Mandalorian & Grogu Panel
Day 1 - Friday, April 18th
Celebration Stage
10am-11am JST (9pm-10pm EST)
Welcome to the first panel of Star Wars Celebration Japan! The panel began with R2-D2 and C-3PO taking the stage, followed by Kathleen Kennedy and Dave Filoni. They announced the ongoing development of Star Wars films by James Mangold (Logan, A Complete Unknown, Ford v Ferrari), Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy (Ms. Marvel, Saving Face), and Taika Waititi (Thor: Ragnarok, Thor: Love and Thunder, Jojo Rabbit, What We Do in the Shadows, Our Flag Means Death) as well as a new a new trilogy by Simon Kinberg (The Martian, Logan, Fantastic Four (2015), X-Men: Days of Future Past). Dave Filoni also said he will be filming season 2 of Ahsoka when he returns from Japan.
R2-D2 and C-3PO - ©Star Wars
Kathleen Kennedy and Dave Filoni - ©Star Wars
Star Wars: Starfighter
In theaters on May 28th, 2027
Announced today at Star Wars Celebration Japan, Star Wars: Starfighter arrives in theaters on May 28th, 2027. The standalone movie is directed by Shawn Levy (Deadpool & Wolverine, Stranger Things, Free Guy) with Jonathan Tropper writing the script. Star Wars: Starfighter stars Ryan Gosling (Barbie, The Notebook, La La Land, Drive) as a brand new character. The film takes place five years after Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and is currently in pre-production with filming starting fall 2025. Ryan Gosling made his debut on the Star Wars Celebration stage alongside Shawn Levy, Dave Filoni, and Kathleen Kennedy. Gosling shared a photo his mom took of his childhood Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back bedsheets from when he was five.
Shawn Levy, Ryan Gosling, Dave Filoni, and Kathleen Kennedy - ©Star Wars
Shawn Levy & Ryan Gosling - ©Star Wars
Shawn Levy, Ryan Gosling, & Dave Filoni - ©Star Wars
The Mandalorian & Grogu
In theaters on May 22nd, 2026
The next Star Wars film arriving in theaters is The Mandalorian & Grogu, debuting on May 22nd, 2026. Jon Favreau joined Dave Filoni and Kathleen Kennedy on stage and shared behind-the-scenes photos from the set including a fully built AT-AT set. They also shared a first look at the film with a still of Din Djarin, Grogu, and Garazeb “Zeb” Orrelios and Anzellans inside Grogu’s pram. When The Mandalorian and Grogu jump from the streaming screen of Disney+ to the big screen at the movies, the film will be available in IMAX.
Pedro Pascal and Sigourney Weaver arrived on stage to join the panel. Photos of Sigourney Weaver on set were shown as an X-Wing Fighter Pilot New Republic Officer with BDX droids. Filoni also later said on the Star Wars Live stage that Weaver’s character is a leader who “fought in the rebellion and understands what’s at stake with the empire”. Sigourney Weaver said on the Star Wars Live stage that her character hires The Mandalorian and Grogu. She also admitted that she hadn’t seen The Mandalorian on Disney+ when she was first approached about the role, but quickly became a fan and “fell in love with the characters”, especially Din Djarin and Grogu. Jon Favreau confirmed in an interview with ExtraTV that Sigourney Weaver’s character is named Colonel Bishop.
Pedro Pascal & Sigourney Weaver - ©ReedPop
Pedro Pascal, Grogu, & Jon Favreau - ©ReedPop
Of course, no Mandalorian panel is complete without Grogu! He arrived on the stage with a group of BDX Droids, one with an Anzellan. A new look at Pedro Pascal as Din Djarin / The Mandalorian unmasked was shared. Additionally, a sizzle reel for the film was shown to panel attendees only. The clip features Grogu wielding his growing force powers and breaking apart a mouse droid, an AT-AT battle scene with Din Djarin taking out a squad of snowtroopers, and the first look at Jeremy Allen White as Jabba the Hutt’s son, Rotta the Hutt.
Pedro Pascal as Din Djarin - ©via Pedro Pascal on Instagram
