Jon Favreau Confirms IG-88 for ‘Star Wars: The Mandalorian’

The Mandalorian is set to take the Star Wars universe into a new narrative territory, but it sounds like that will involve some old favorites as well.

Executive producer and writer Jon Favreau recently confirmed via Instagram that IG-88 will be making some sort of an appearance in the series. Favreau’s post, which was captioned “Merry Christmas”, showed the fan-favorite droid standing in front of a green screen.

IG-88 possibly appearing in The Mandalorian was first reported earlier this month, when it sounded like several bounty hunters would be returning in the series.

“IG-88 has recently been seen on set, filming his close-ups, and being the star that he is on the set of The Mandalorian.” Making Star Wars reported. “The old time bounty hunter isn’t just standing around either, we’ve had credible reports about blasters being fired and he’s riding speeder bikes and attacking enemies.”

While it’s unclear exactly what role IG-88 will have in the series, the droid joins an eclectic group of people who will be making an appearance. Pedro Pascal will star as the series’ titular character, with the cast also including Carl Weathers, Nick Nolte, Giancarlo Esposito, Gina Carano, Omid Abtahi, Emily Swallow, and Werner Herzog.

Favreau spoke about the new cast additions, praising their additions to the new series.

“We’re having a great time working with this incredibly talented group and excited for everyone to see what we’re up to,” Favreau said in a statement.

Little is known about the upcoming series, but it looks like Lucasfilm and Disney are finally starting to reveal some new information about The Mandalorian. The series synopsis confirmed the show would be set after the events of Return of the Jedi but before the rise of the First Order, teasing that it could bridge the gap to The Force Awakens.

“The Mandalorian is set after the fall of the Empire and before the emergence of the First Order. We follow the travails of a lone gunfighter in the outer reaches of the galaxy far from the authority of the New Republic,” reads the synopsis.

In the announcement of the series, Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy expressed her excitement at the new series, praising Favreau’s contributions.

“I couldn’t be more excited about Jon coming on board to produce and write for the new direct-to-consumer platform,” Kathleen Kennedy shared in a statement announcing the series. “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.”

The Mandalorian is expected to premiere on Disney+ in late 2019, though there’s no word yet on a specific date.