The Mandalorian Director Says George Lucas’ Set Visit Was Like the “Real Yoda” Dropping By

Star Wars creator George Lucas may have left the galaxy far, far away in capable hands by selling Lucasfilm to Disney, but he is still known to drop by the sets of various projects, sometimes even offering input or advice on how to pull off key sequences, with second unit director on The Mandalorian Sam Hargrave noting that when Lucas paid a visit to the set of the series, it felt like Yoda himself had shown up. Despite Lucas keeping a lower profile in the media, his visits to the worlds of Star Wars still come with plenty attention and notoriety, as his legacy among the world of science fiction is immeasurable.

“I was there but, I mean, I was working on another stage,” Hargrave recalled to Collider. “But I did pass through, and I saw him there. He was actually – you would’ve thought that the real Yoda had showed up. I mean, he kind of did. But there was more people there that day than any other day on any other, you know, episode of the whole season. That was as if you were at Comic-Con on the stage where he was. It was crazy.”

The Mandalorian is credited as being created by Jon Favreau, with longtime Star Wars director, writer, and producer Dave Filoni also being an important part of the project’s development. With Filoni having worked directly with Lucas on Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Favreau previously recalled how Lucas would tease his protege on set.

“He would be giving Dave a hard time about how many setups he was getting and how fast he was shooting and urging him to go faster,” Favreau shared with Entertainment Weekly last September. “He was like a boxer’s cornerman coaching him, but always with a twinkle in his eye.”

Filoni, meanwhile, confirmed that, while Lucas was interested in the series, he never attempted to overstep any bounds and provide too many suggestions.

“Not a tremendous amount. We talk about other stuff. When I talk with him, I like to get more knowledge. He’ll give me some reminders, especially before I shoot something, about how many setups I should try to get in a day, and I might rack his brain for certain things about how to cover a scene,” Filoni explained to The Hollywood Reporter. “He’s been very complimentary. I think he’s enjoyed the show, and he said once [that] now he gets to watch it as a fan and watch it as a viewer. My job is to bring that knowledge forward and pass on what I’ve learned from him in every discipline to Jon and to the creative departments.”

Disney previously claimed that fans could expect Season Three of The Mandalorian later this year.

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