The Mandalorian creator Jon Favreau reportedly signed a major deal with Lucasfilm after the runaway success of Disney+'s flagship Star Wars series.
According to Puck News, Favreau was tapped to produce just one season of The Mandalorian. When the fan response came pouring in, Disney and Lucasfilm offered him an "insane deal" to do more that included a number of incentives and bonuses.
The project that would eventually become The Mandalorian was announced in November 2017 for the then-unnamed Disney streaming service. The following March, it was announced that Favreau would serve as the writer and producer of the Star War series. "I couldn’t be more excited about Jon coming on board to produce and write for the new direct-to-consumer platform," Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy said at the time. "Jon brings the perfect mix of producing and writing talent, combined with a fluency in the Star Wars universe. This series will allow Jon the chance to work with a diverse group of writers and directors and give Lucasfilm the opportunity to build a robust talent base."
Details began to trickle out over the remainder of 2018, and in October, it was confirmed that the show was titled The Mandalorian and would focus on a Mandalorian gunslinger after the fall of the Empire in Return of the Jedi. Two months later, Lucasfilm announced the full cast, including Pedro Pascal as the eponymous Mandalorian Din Djarin.
The Mandalorian premiered with the launch of Disney+ in November 2019 and was an instant hit, both for its gritty aesthetic and for the inclusion of a character named the Child -- an infant version of the same species as Jedi Master Yoda. Lovingly dubbed "Baby Yoda" by fans, the Child quickly became a worldwide sensation. "I think what's great about what George [Lucas] created is that Yoda proper, the character that we grew up watching, was always shrouded in mystery, and that was what made him so archetypal and so mythic," Favreau explained. "We know who he is based on his behavior and what he stands for, but we don't know a lot of details about where he comes from or his species. I think that's why people are so curious about this little one of the same species."
In the time since then, The Mandalorian's popularity has only continued to grow, as has Favreau's role in Disney+'s Star Wars universe. In addition to his work on The Mandalorian, he was one of the major forces behind The Book of Boba Fett, and he's also an executive producer on the upcoming Ahsoka series.
Season 3 of The Mandalorian has yet to receive a premiere date.
Source: Puck News