The Mandalorian has established that, even years after the events of Return of the Jedi, the Empire hadn't been fully vanquished. Various Moffs still held power throughout the Galaxy, and the assumption is that they'll eventually be key in the formation of The First Order.
In the case of Giancarlo Esposito's Moff Gideon, it seems as if he may be instrumental in Emperor Palpatine's resurrection. We know he's interested in cloning, and the deformed beings in that chamber we saw during the show's second season looked an awful lot like Supreme Leader Snoke. Plus, it would make perfect sense for the weakened Palpatine to want Grogu!
Talking during a recent appearance at Fan Expo Canada, Esposito explained that Gideon is among those who, "when everything fell apart, there were wardens who were placed in different parts of this particular galaxy to maintain order."
He'd add that the apparent demise of the Empire means that "when everything falls apart, and you have no leadership, and everything is just crumbling, we all would want someone to stand up and have some kind of vision for how to be about all of us."
As Gideon has that vision, he's now "been given that wardenship over a particular part of geography land mass. And he sees that the other wardens aren't really as strong and powerful as him. He gets a taste of, 'Oh, I can straighten all this out,'" the actor continued added that his Imperial has become "drunk with the idea that his vision is better:"
Esposito would go on to reiterate the importance of Gideon saying "love live the Empire" last time we saw him, so expect that line to come into play when the villain returns in The Mandalorian's third season.
The sequel trilogy left fans with a lot of questions, and while some might argue that those movies are best left alone, it would be no bad thing for Lucasfilm to start filling in some of the gaps here.
The Mandalorian season 3 is expected to premiere on Disney+ in February 2023.