Star Wars: The Mandalorian Director Bryce Dallas Howard Explains Challenge of Baby Yoda Sipping Soup Scene

In the most recent episode of Star Wars: The Mandalorian, fans got a moment that may just be the most iconic Baby Yoda scene yet. That scene would be the one in which the Star Wars gods bestowed up on us Baby Yoda sipping soup while watching a fight between Gina Carrano's Cara Dune fought it out with Pedro Pascal's The Mandalorian. However, while it's a moment that has become the internet's New Favorite Meme, it turns out it was a tricky one to get just right at least according to Bryce Dallas Howard who directed the episode, entitled "Sanctuary".

Speaking with Variety, Howard explained that so much of the scene came down to getting Baby Yoda's reaction and that now-famous soup sipping just right. Like, how does a Baby Yoda sip soup? It was a real situation they had to figure out.

"When we were shooting that fight just before, so much rested on Gina because Pedro at that point was on rehearsal for another show," Howard said. "It wasn't like I was working with Pedro on a day-to-day basis, so Gina was the face of the episode. Working with Mando's stunt double and body double it was exciting because Gina was able to do all that action and we could lean into it. That day was all about that brutal fight: Gina and Mando's stunt double were just destroying each other. And then it gets to Baby sipping his soup and everything else goes away, all these amazing feats of athleticism and martial arts, and all this stuff just becomes Baby with soup and all we wanted to do was a zillion takes of how Baby was going to drink his soup. Would he drink it with one hand? With two hands? Sipping it a lot? Sipping it a little bit?"

Howard further said that there were just "so many options".

"A Baby sip, a hearty sip, we had so many options to contend with," she said. "Baby just wins every scene he's in."

And it's that sentiment, that Baby Yoda wins every scene he's in, that seems to be fan takeaway as well. It's particularly true for "Sanctuary" as the episode takes Baby Yoda to new heights of cute with the little guy walking, talking, and making friends. You don't have to take our word for it, though. Director Deborah Chow said previously that even series star Werner Herzog has been won over by Baby Yoda.

"I was directing Werner with the puppet, and Werner had just fallen in love with the baby. Werner, I think, had forgotten it wasn't actually a live creature, and started sort of... directing the baby," director Deborah Chow said in a previous interview. "Werner is talking to the baby as if it was a real thing. And I'm trying to direct Werner and I'm just like, 'How did I get here? How did my life end up like this?'"

Star Wars: The Mandalorian releases new episodes on Disney+ every Friday. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is set for release on December 20th.

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