Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

The Mandalorian: First footage debuts from Disney+ live-action Star Wars series

The series takes place five years after ‘Return of the Jedi’, as creator Jon Favreau added: ‘After the celebration of the Empire falling... then what happens?’

Clarisse Loughrey

Monday 15 April 2019 08:33 BST

Watch the brand-new teaser for Star Wars: Episode IX

Star Wars Celebration – the world’s biggest convention for the franchise – offered attendees a very special treat, as a first look at The Mandalorian was screened during the show’s panel.

The series, which will debut on Disney+, boasts an incredible level of production value, with its darker, grittier approach somewhat echoing 2016’s Rogue One in tone, although its emphasis is on all the galaxy’s “scum and villainy”.

Executive producers Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni revealed that the show takes place five years after Return of the Jedi, as Favreau added: “After the celebration of the Empire falling... then what happens?”

The reel kicked off with a scene featuring Carl Weathers’s Greef, the head of a guild of bounty hunters, who offers The Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) a very special job, requiring a direct commission.

The Mandalorian himself is, according to Pascal, ”mysterious, lone gunfighter in the outer reaches of the galaxy. Some would say he is a questionable moral character.” The series will return to some of George Lucas’s original inspirations for Star Wars: samurai and western films, with the Mandalorian himself having “a lot of Clint Eastwood in him”, according to Pascal.

Star Wars films – ranked worst to best

Show all 11

1/11Star Wars films – ranked worst to best

Star Wars films – ranked worst to best

11. Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002)

The prequel trilogy has lived on in infamy, but the true low point of this low point in the Star Wars franchise must be Attack of the Clones, the dry, crusted middle of the cinematic sandwich. While Revenge of the Sith has some sense of completion and The Phantom Menace has some sense of wonder, all Attack of the Clones has is a CGI Yoda bopping about the screen like an unswattable fly while battling Christopher Lee’s Count Dooku. It’s a film driven by unnecessary desires: from the space politics, to Boba Fett’s backstory, to Padmé and Anakin’s romance. The latter is the most insufferable, since George Lucas never had much of an ear for dialogue, as notoriously pointed out by Harrison Ford when he declared on set: “George, you can type this s***, but you sure as hell can’t say it.” Which leads us to one of the worst line readings in cinematic history, when Hayden Christensen’s Anakin laments: “I don't like sand. It's coarse and rough and irritating – and it gets everywhere.”

Rex Features

Star Wars films – ranked worst to best

10. Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005)

Hollywood has increasingly made the assumption that “darker” means better when it comes to cinema – it explains why the Harry Potter films look like they were made while someone gradually turned down the dimmer switch on the studio lights. Of course, audiences know that “darker” sometimes means that your protagonist-turned-villain becomes a “youngling”-murdering, amateur street magician-looking sourpuss. Anakin’s arc here comes to a whimper of an ending, underlined by the much-derided decision to have Darth Vader’s first moments onscreen involve him howling “Noooooo!” up to the sky like a mournful hound. That said, Ewan McGregor confirms here that he managed to escape the franchise largely unscathed, as this instalment sees him have the most fun with the clunky dialogue (see: “Hello there!” and “I have the high ground!”).

Rex Features

Star Wars films – ranked worst to best

9. Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999)

The Phantom Menace escapes slightly ahead of the rest of the prequel trilogy, if only for the fact it remembers these films are meant to be fun once in a while. The pod race – it’s a good scene! Darth Maul is all looks, zero follow through – it’s embarrassing to act like you’ve won, only to be cut in half and sent hurtling down an exhaust pipe – but his inclusion in the film did introduce one of the best musical themes in Star Wars history, John Williams’s “Duel of the Fates”. However, the space politics are a particular drag here, with all the talk of trade disputes, and, of course, it's obligatory to mention the terror that is Jar Jar Binks.

Rex

Star Wars films – ranked worst to best

8. Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)

Although it’s the weakest of the new generation of Star Wars films, Solo still holds up as a fun romp worthy of Han Solo’s rascal reputation. Alden Ehrenreich picks up on enough of Harrison Ford’s mannerisms to sell the character without sliding into imitation, while Donald Glover is a scene stealer from the very moment he walks on screen as Lando Calrissian. It’s a lost opportunity, then, that the film is otherwise slowed down by an impulse to offer backstory to as many aspects of Han’s character as possible. Did we really need to know how we got the name “Solo”? Really?

Rex Features

Star Wars films – ranked worst to best

7. Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker

Director JJ Abrams, like the hero of an ancient prophecy, was destined to make both enemies and allies with Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. There will be arguments. And there will be arguments about the arguments. There will be obsessive deconstructions and over-interpretations of each frame and intake of breath. But, at the end of the day, this is still a Star Wars film in its very bones, muscle, and sinew. Whatever controversy Abrams might have brewed up with his artistic choices, he still captures magnificently the soul of this series: that unwavering hope that the powerless can win, despite the odds.

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Star Wars films – ranked worst to best

6. Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983)

There’s a lot to wrap up in the concluding chapter of the original trilogy. The result is a few odd turns for the sake of plot convenience. What does one do with a character as enigmatic as Boba Fett? Why, have him topple into the Sarlacc pit within the first 20 minutes! How does one put to rest the love triangle hinted at in A New Hope? Why, insert a revelation that Luke and Leia are, in fact, brother and sister! Even the second Death Star oddly feels sillier than The Force Awakens and its third attempt at a giant ball in space, since The First Order at least had the excuse that their obsessive admiration of the Empire may have clouded their judgement. That said, there’s still plenty of charm to be found here and the Ewoks aren’t all that bad. Before you dismiss them as irritating merchandise opportunities, it’s worth remembering that they have absolutely no qualms about killing and eating people.

Rex Features

Star Wars films – ranked worst to best

5. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)

If Rogue One is any indication of Disney’s plans for the franchise and its future, then there’s no cause for concern. The first of the “A Star Wars Story” spin-offs, it shifts into gear with ease, soothing audiences by not straying too far from the familiar timeline while introducing a full set of new characters and a grittier tone. Stylistically, it feels more like a Vietnam War movie and is proof of how far a gifted director like Gareth Edwards can stray from the franchise’s usual formula and still feel grounded in the same world. Plus, you have to admire the guts it takes to deliver an ending like that…

Rex Features

Star Wars films – ranked worst to best

4. Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015)

Disney made a very smart move with The Force Awakens. As the first Star Wars film of a new generation, it not only had to make its own mark, but feel familiar enough that it welcomed fans back with open arms. The balance is hit perfectly here. That’s largely due to the film’s new trio of central heroes, who radiate the same kind of warmth, bravery, and spirit that carved a special place in people’s hearts when they were first introduced to the franchise’s original stars. Daisy Ridley’s Rey, John Boyega’s Finn, and Oscar Isaac’s Poe honour Star Wars's past while striding into its unknown future. It also helps that the film has landed on a villain like Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), whose drive and complexity may see him surpass even Darth Vader by the end of his story in Episode IX.

Rex Features

Star Wars films – ranked worst to best

3. Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017)

Any divisiveness the film attracted certainly proved one thing: here’s a Star Wars film that actually took a creative risk. And what a bold, ambitious, and ultimately beautiful risk that was. Director Rian Johnson took the cinematic legacy presented before him and added a new richness to its textures. He allowed heroism to go beyond the clean divide between good and evil; through Luke and Rey, we were taught not to be ashamed of our doubts but to grow stronger because of them. We were taught not to use destiny as a crutch, but to know when to forge our own paths. The Last Jedi is a soulful film told through some of the most striking cinematography of the entire franchise.

Rex Features

Star Wars films – ranked worst to best

2. Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)

It’s the place where it all began. The Star Wars franchise has only become the success it is today because of how purely revolutionary the first instalment was as a piece of Hollywood filmmaking. It is, to this day, one of the most successful examples of the modern epic, endlessly imitated but so rarely with the same heart or ambition. George Lucas tapped into one of the most timeless qualities of storytelling: its ability to let us see and understand our own world through the eyes of another. Star Wars has become so iconic because, even on such a grand scale, we know and relate to the emotions at hand – fear, love, or a desire to do what’s right.

Rex Features

Star Wars films – ranked worst to best

1. Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

The Empire Strikes Back is remarkable in its ability to pursue real emotional stakes. Its closing moments, the final note to its symphony of sacrifice and tragedy, leaves us with the single, delicate emotion that is hope, blooming in the darkness as our heroes set out to save Han and restore the Rebel Alliance. What A New Hope built up by making us fall in love with these characters, The Empire Strikes Back recouped in sharing with us their pain and their fears. Darth Vader’s reveal that he’s Luke’s father has, of course, found its place in history, but there’s an equal sense of emotional resonance in the moment Leia and Han depart, moments before he’s trapped in carbonite. When Leia’s “I love you” is returned by Han’s “I know” – a line written by Harrison Ford himself – we’re reminded of how magical Star Wars’s sense of storytelling can be, condensing everything that these two characters feel for each other into five simple words.

Rex Features

The scene then cut to a roasted Kowakian monkey-lizard, with another awaiting its fate in a cage – is this the inglorious end of Salacious B Crumb? The Mandalorian, meanwhile, visits his client, only to discover himself surrounded by four Stormtroopers with dirtied armour. When one trooper tells him, “We have you four to one”, he snaps back: “I like those odds”.

His client, however, is a mysterious character played by Werner Herzog, who appears to have some connection to the former Empire and is after a very sensitive target, dead or alive. He can’t offer a name or a description, but can only reveal that they’re 50-years-old, as he hands over a tracking fob and the last four digits of their genetic code. You can bet this target is someone who will already be familiar to us.

The Celebration audience then saw a short teaser for the series, which featured the Empire’s shadow prominently, as Herzog’s character intones: “The Empire improves every system it touches”.

We saw initial shots of Gina Carano’s Cara Dune, an ex-Rebel Shock Trooper and a loner who’s now struggling to reintegrate into society, alongside the Mandalorian’s ship, the Razorcrest: a silver, reflective old army gunship.

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days

New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days

New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled

Also introduced were Giancarlo Esposito’s character, who is also connected to the former Empire and, at one point, pilots a TIE fighter, alongside a double blaster-wielding droid voiced by Taika Waititi (who also directs on the show). Although similar in appearance to IG-88, who we know from The Empire Strikes Back, when he appears among the bounty hunters summoned by Darth Vader, the character in The Mandalorian has been confirmed to be IG-11.

The Mandalorian debuts when Disney+ launches on 12 November.

Click here to follow our live updates of the 2019 Star Wars Celebration

Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies