When Bob Iger returned to Disney as CEO, he quickly decided to dial back his predecessor's spending on Disney+ content. That led to a dramatic reduction in original content on the platform and a major pivot for at least a couple of small-screen projects.
A Moana TV series became the Moana 2 movie, while Jon Favreau put his scripts for The Mandalorian Season 4 to one side to write and direct a feature, The Mandalorian and Grogu. Despite how beloved the TV show is, excitement from the start has been muted, with many arguing that it just looked like another episode of The Mandalorian.
Alas, it seems that's the opinion of most critics, too. Following a seven-year wait for a new Star Wars movie, reviews suggest that The Mandalorian and Grogu is not the way for this long-running franchise.
Low on stakes and lacking the sort of epicness that's expected from this Galaxy Far, Far Away, it seems the idea to make this a new-viewer-friendly standalone tale has simply not panned out. Ultimately, box office takings will decide the future of Din Djarin and Grogu, but if the movie bombs, then how likely is it that Season 4 becomes a reality on streaming?
We'll have to wait and see what happens, but with 43 verdicts counted, The Mandalorian and Grogu has a "Rotten" 58% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
That's better than Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (51%) and Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (54%), but beneath Star Wars: Attack of the Clones (62%) and Solo: A Star Wars Story (69%).
"By nudging 'The Mandalorian' onto the big screen," writes Variety, "Disney, the purveyor of the 'Star Wars' multiverse, is offering nothing more (or less) than a couple of likeable, diverting, semi-forgettable episodes jammed together, albeit with the lavishly scaled action of a big-budget movie adventure."
Deadline adds, "At the end of the day, [The Mandalorian and Grogu] is what it is, and the fanbase will show up for it, much like they did last time. But for how much longer? The same fans are tired of being in the limbo between the original films and the prequels, and they want to see more of the minor characters than the usual suspects."
"The Mandalorian and Grogu (not a title that rolls trippingly off the tongue) mostly fulfills its goal of being better than the much-maligned The Rise of Skywalker and giving its titular characters a viable launch on the big screen," notes The Hollywood Reporter. "But it’s hard not to wish that had aimed been a bit higher."
Empire concludes, "The first Star Wars film in nearly a decade doesn’t shake up the formula: instead, it’s a lively if inessential extended episode of the series. But Mando remains cool, and Grogu remains cute."
GamesRadar+'s verdict expands on that by explaining, "As a simple adventure story, The Mandalorian and Grogu is a lot of fun with Baby Yoda's sheer adorableness doing a lot of heavy lifting. Epic action and a pulsating score help bring this story to a cinematic level that feels a real step up from season 3. Yet, with surprisingly low stakes for a Star Wars movie, it all ends up feeling rather inconsequential."
Over to The Guardian, it's said, "The badass bounty hunter and his little green friend take on the Empire and Jabba the Hutt’s family in this solid enough addition to the ever-expanding universe."
Ultimately, io9's review seems to best sum up how many critics seem to feel about The Mandalorian and Grogu:
"In the end, The Mandalorian and Grogu is a throwaway adventure in the lives of these characters. A blip. A side quest. It doesn’t add anything of true significance to Star Wars as a whole or, more importantly, to the lore of the Mandalorian and Grogu as characters. It’s just a mindless ride. A way to kill two hours and forget about the world. Which would have been acceptable if the film left you feeling anything beyond that. This is Star Wars, for crying out loud. A chance to be an entertaining, exciting spectacle, and also leave the audience in awe. That’s something which, on occasion, The Mandalorian show did. It’s a shame the movie version doesn’t. The Mandalorian and Grogu is ultimately nothing more than a longer, better-looking, mid-tier episode of the show. Some will find it passable, but Star Wars deserves better. This is not the way."
In The Mandalorian and Grogu, the evil Empire has fallen, and Imperial warlords remain scattered throughout the galaxy. As the fledgling New Republic works to protect everything the Rebellion fought for, they have enlisted the help of legendary Mandalorian bounty hunter Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and his young apprentice Grogu.
Directed by Jon Favreau, the movie also stars Sigourney Weaver and Jeremy Allen White. It's produced by Jon Favreau, Kathleen Kennedy, Dave Filoni, and Ian Bryce, with music composed by Ludwig Göransson.
The Mandalorian and Grogu arrives in theaters on May 22.