Jon Favreau explains why“ Mandalorian and Grogu” doesn't have the classic “Star Wars ”opening“ ”crawl

Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau explain why The Mandalorian and Grogu doesn't open with the traditional Star Wars crawl.

Key Points

• Former Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy previously told Entertainment Weekly that all future Star Wars films would use the iconic yellow text.

• Instead, Filoni and Favreau say they're saving the crawl specifically for Skywalker films.

Notice something missing fromThe Mandalorian and Grogu?

No, we're not talking aboutAhsoka or Admiral Thrawn.The big-screen adaptation of the popular Disney+ show doesn't feature another familiar component of theStar Warsuniverse — the iconic opening crawl.

The apparent omission comes despiteLucasfilmpresident Kathleen KennedytellingEntertainment Weeklyin 2023that those blocks of bright yellow text would continue sliding across the screen in all of the franchise's future films.

Instead,The Mandalorian and Grogu, now in theaters, delivers some opening context in a light blue font that remains stationary against a starry backdrop.

DirectorJon Favreauand his co-writer, Lucasfilm presidentDave Filoni, join EW'sDebunkedvideo series to explain.

"We've only seen the crawl in the Skywalker saga films," Favreau says, referring to the prequel, original, and sequel trilogies. "Solodid not have a crawl.Rogue Onedid not have a crawl."

Filoni notes that all the spinoff films and Disney+ series feature "a blurb that explains some context" thatStar Warsfans should know before they dive headfirst into a galaxy far, far away.

"Ahsokahas a version of a crawl, but we put it in red, and it's strictly vertical. It doesn't go back," he adds. "So we find different ways to do it."

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For Filoni, these blurbs are a way to capture "the serial vibe" of the franchise. "But the classicStar Warscrawl is something that we try to reserve only for saga-type films," he says.

Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with ourEW Dispatch newsletter.

Favreau, meanwhile, vividly remembers seeing the very firstStar Warscrawl in theaters as a child.

"Such an iconic opening. So that's why we don't use the crawl for everything inStar Wars," he remarks. "There's so muchStar Warsnow, so Dave has explained, we save it for the saga."

And, sorry to the Skywalkers, but this is Mando (Pedro Pascal) and Grogu's time to shine. The bounty-hunting father-son duo makes the hyperjump from their Emmy-winning seriesThe Mandalorianto the big screen as they head out on a dangerous new adventure. Joining Mando and Grogu on their journey is Sigourney Weaver, who also participated in theDebunkedseries to address a theory that her character, Colonel Ward, might secretly be an Imperial spy.

"Is it possible? Well, it's an interesting question. You know, politics is difficult and creating a New Republic is difficult," she says. "This is a difficult job that she has, and I think she's been in the service a long time, so I guess it's possible, but unlikely that this woman who came up during the rebellion and is an X-wing fighter pilot would spend one second entertaining the idea of spying for the evil empire."

She adds, "I decide! Today! Now! No!"

The Mandalorian and Groguis in theaters now. Watch Pascal, Filoni, Weaver, and Favreau react to even more movie theories in the video above.

Read the original article onEntertainment Weekly

byMario Satorik

in

May 23, 2026

Jon Favreau explains why“ Mandalorian and Grogu” doesn't have the classic “Star Wars ”opening“ ”crawl

Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau explain why The Mandalorian and Grogu doesn't open with the traditional Star Wars crawl. Key Po...

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The best 'Star Wars' Easter eggs hidden in 'The Mandalorian and Grogu'

Spoiler alert! We're discussing a few plot details from "The Mandalorian and Grogu" (in theaters now), so turn away if you haven't seen the movie yet and don't want to know.

As long asthe Mandalorian and Groguhave been traipsing around the galaxy, "Star Wars" fans have been pointing at the screen and proclaiming, "I understood that reference."

"The Mandalorian and Grogu" is packed with scenes that echo classic moments from "Star Wars" history. The snowy opening action sequence evokes the Hoth battle that started "The Empire Strikes Back," and when the Hutts make Mando fight a giant snake, it's like a mashup of the trash compactor from "A New Hope" and the Rancor pit from "Return of the Jedi."

But beyond the obvious callbacks, "The Mandalorian" has always been a gold mine of more obscure "Star Wars" references, Easter eggs and cameos for diehards to eat up, and the film is no exception. Here are the best ones you may have missed.

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Martin Scorsese's character is related to Jon Favreau's from 'Solo'

Martin Scorsesehas a fun role as an alien fry cook, who gives Mando information on his quest. The legendary filmmaker's character is an Ardennian, a monkey-like alien species created for the 2018 Han Solo spinoff movie "Solo: A Star Wars Story."

In "Solo," Han met an Ardennian pilot named Rio Durant, who was voiced by "Mandalorian and Grogu" director Jon Favreau.

But these two aren't just the same species. Scorsese's character is named Hugo Durant, so he is apparently a relative of Rio Durant from "Solo" (though Rio doesn't appear in "Grogu" after dying tragically in "Solo"). The first name of Scorsese's character is presumably a nod to the director's 2011 movie "Hugo."

Sigourney Weaver's deck of cards has a link to Han Solo

When Mando tellsSigourney Weaver's Colonel Wardhe'll take out "every bad guy in your deck of cards," he isn't being metaphorical: She has a literal deck of cards, each of which has the name of an Imperial warlord on the New Republic's radar.

These are modified versions of playing cards from a deck of sabacc, the card game Han Solo was playing when he won the Millennium Falcon from Lando Calrissian, as mentioned in "The Empire Strikes Back" and depicted in "Solo: A Star Wars Story."

The cards Ward shows Mando come from an adapted sabacc deck that the New Republic created. According to the 2024 book "The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire," each card in the deck features "the last known image of a wanted Imperial fugitive," and the goal was for these cards to circulate throughout the galaxy and help the wider population to identify the Imperials.

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A fight sequence brings a classic 'New Hope' prop to life

Rotta the Hutt (Jeremy Allen White) is forced to fight in what is dubbed a Dejarik match, where creatures are unleashed in an arena.

It's called that because Dejarik is the holographic game Chewbacca and R2-D2 played on the Millennium Falcon in "A New Hope" in the scene where C-3PO memorably recommends that R2 "let the Wookiee win." The game, which popped back up in "The Force Awakens" and "The Rise of Skywalker," uses holographic versions of alien creatures as the pieces.

So in "Grogu," the arena fight with all the creatures is essentially a Dejarik game come to life, to the point that the arena's floor is even designed to resemble a Dejarik board.

Rotta the Hutt's baby photo is a sneaky callback

"The Mandalorian and Grogu" isn't our introduction to Rotta. Jabba's son was also a significant character in the 2008 animated film "Star Wars: The Clone Wars," which involved Rotta being kidnapped by Count Dooku. But Rotta was still a baby in that movie, making him essentially Baby Jabba, years before we had a Baby Yoda.

So in "Grogu," when the Hutt twins show Mando a hologram of Rotta and note he has had a growth spurt since then, it's both a joke about how out of date that image is and a nod to how he looked the last time fans saw him. The hologram in "Grogu" is an impressively faithful recreation of Rotta's appearance from the "Clone Wars" movie.

Fan-favorite animated characters jump to live action

Speaking of "The Clone Wars," "Star Wars" fans who only watch the live-action material may not even realize Embo, the bounty hunter who captures Mando, is a returning character.

Embo was introduced on "The Clone Wars" animated series in a 2010 episode. The show established Embo's relationship with the Hutts, for whom he worked as a bodyguard, and he also had wolf-like pet on the show like he does in the movie.

Zeb, the purple alien from the New Republic who teams up with Mando, isn't new, either. He's from the Disney XD series "Star Wars Rebels," which featured Zeb fighting the Empire alongside fellow rebels Ezra Bridger, Hera Syndulla and Sabine Wren, all of whom were brought to live action in the "Ahsoka" show.

A prequel alien species makes a return

A number of familiar alien species pop up, but there's one in particular that prequel fans should get a kick out of. The scary-looking fellow who Mando encounters on his way to see Lord Janu (Jonny Coyne) is an Iktotchi named Hogsbreth, played by Matthew Willig. That's the same kind of alien as Saesee Tiin, a member of the Jedi Council in "The Phantom Menace."

Carl Weathers gets a touching homage

Fans picked up on this one when it appeared in the trailer, but during the sequence after the gladiator battle where the creatures get loose, a sign can be seen written in Aurebesh, the "Star Wars" galaxy's fictional alphabet. Translated to English, it reads "Weathers Apollo," a nod toCarl Weathers. The "Mandalorian" actor, who also played Apollo Creed in the "Rocky" movies, died in 2024 at age 76.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:'The Mandalorian and Grogu' Easter eggs 'Star Wars' fans will love

byMario Satorik

in

May 23, 2026

The best 'Star Wars' Easter eggs hidden in 'The Mandalorian and Grogu'

Spoiler alert! We're discussing a few plot details from "The Mandalorian and Grogu" (in theaters now), so turn away if yo...

Read More

5 Biggest Bombshells from “The Crash”,“ ”Including How Davion Flanagan Almost Didn't Get Into the Deadly Car

'The Crash' tells varying accounts of what happened to Dominic Russo and Davion Flanagan when they were killed by Mackenzie Shirilla in a high-speed crash

NEED TO KNOW

• The Netflix documentary includes interviews with people sharing various accounts

• Some of the victims' family members believed in Shirilla's innocence up until her trial

The Crashtells the tragic story of howDominic RussoandDavion Flanaganwere brutallykilled in a high-speed car crashin July 2022.

The Netflix documentary, which hit the streamer on May 15, shows the different perspectives of what may have happened whenMackenzie Shirillawas driving the young adults home, and hercar sped to 100 mph and slammed into a brick wall.

As the documentary unfolds, it includes interviews withShirilla's friends and family members, who gave various accounts and new information as to what happened. Shirilla was ultimately arrested in connection with Russo and Flanagan's deaths, convicted andsentenced to two concurrent terms of 15 years to life in prison.

Here are all the biggest bombshells fromThe Crashdocumentary.

Flanagan wasn't originally supposed to drive home with Shirilla

On the night of July 30, 2022, Russo, Flanagan and Shirilla were attending a "sleepover" at a friend's home when they decided to leave around 5 a.m. the next day. However, only Shirilla and Russo were originally supposed to leave at that time, according to their friends in the Netflix doc.

Flanagan's friend, Bubba Turner, said that he and Flanagan had actually made plans for the morning on July 31, so he was planning on driving Flanagan home from the party. Unfortunately, at the last moment, Flanagan changed his mind.

"It was right before they left, me and Davion were talking, he was supposed to work on my truck with me the next morning, and I offered to take him home," Turner recalled. "It was set that he was coming home with me, and like last minute he goes, 'I want to shower and maybe sleep for a little bit.' "

Turner remembered Flanagan giving him a hug and telling him he loved him before he left.

"He goes, 'I love you.' I was like, 'Love you too, bro.' Very weird. It was the first time we said we loved each other for awhile," he said.

Flanagan ultimately sat in the back seat of Shirilla's car.

Russo's family initially sat with Shirilla’s family at the trial

In the months after the crash, authorities conducted a thorough investigation to determine what caused the fatal incident. Initially, several of the victims' families assumed that the car had malfunctioned or that Shirilla had been under the influence of substances.

Even after Shirilla was arrested in connection with Flanagan and Russo's deaths, Russo's family maintained a close relationship with her family in the belief that it was still an accident.

When her trial began in August 2023, the Russos were still in touch with Shirilla and even stood near her family in the courtroom.

"I felt bad for her," sister Christine Russo recalled. "I just kept thinking, 'She killed the love of her life and a friend. 'I felt terrible for her.' "

She added, "We still thought she had been drinking or there were drugs involved. They were kids, accidents happen all the time like that. You never in a million years think this girl killed your brother. You just don’t think that way."

Russo's dad, Frank Russo, even recalled telling Shirilla, "I said, 'Kenzie, it’s OK, you gotta try to get through it,' it is what we were all trying to do, and I was trying to be helpful to her, too."

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However, the Russos' opinion changed when they saw videos of Shirilla previously threatening Flanagan.

"I was disgusted, and I really think it just really made me mad," Christine said, while Frank said the entire situation was a "big slap in the face."

Shirilla's parents claimed she was the one in danger in the highway incident, not Russo

Throughout Shirilla's trial, her parents,Natalie and Steve Shirilla, maintained that theirdaughter passed out from a medical emergencyand didn't intentionally crash the car.

In addition to Shirilla's family believing that she wasn't at fault, they also believed that she was the one in danger — not Russo.

One particular moment from the documentary featured a story in which Russo reportedly called his mom after he was driving with Shirilla, and the teen allegedly told him, "I’m going to wreck this car right now."

However, in the documentary, Natalie and Steve claimed that they had evidence that their daughter actually texted Russo's mom and said that Russo was the one threatening to crash the car.

Natalie alleged in the doc that she had screenshots that showed her daughter telling Russo's mom that her son was the one "trying to end my life."

Scott Flanagan said he has the capacity to forgive if he knew the truth about what happened

Flanagan's father, Scott Flanagan, appeared inThe Crash,where he criticized Shirilla's behavior while also begging her to tell the truth about what happened. Shirilla has repeatedly maintained her innocence.

"I have the capacity for forgiveness," Scott said. "I just want to know the truth of what happened that night, and I would be eternally grateful for her to actually tell us how those last few moments were — no matter how damaging to her they might be — to say just to say the truth and let us know and let us grieve properly and have some closure."

He added that his "biggest hope" for Shirilla is that "she does change" and isn't "babied" by her parents while in prison.

Shirilla's friends claimed she was taking a break from smoking before the crash, though THC was in her blood following the incident

Shortly after Shirilla's car was found at the scene, officers found psilocybin mushrooms, marijuana and a digital scale in the car and suspected that drugs were involved in the crash.

Shirilla's blood work later came back positive for THC — the primary compound found in marijuana — but negative for alcohol or psilocybin.

Although Shirilla was akin to smoking marijuana in the past, her friends claimed that she was not smoking the night of the crash. The friends also reiterated that nobody participated in taking mushrooms that night.

"Kenzie didn’t even smoke that night," Turner claimed. "She was on a smoke break, 'cause she was coughing up black mucus or blood mucus something. It was really bad."

Meanwhile, her other friend there, Rosie Graham, reiterated Turner's statement and doubled down that it got "too late" to take mushrooms, so that's why they were found in the car.

Read the original article onPeople

byMario Satorik

in

May 23, 2026

5 Biggest Bombshells from “The Crash”,“ ”Including How Davion Flanagan Almost Didn't Get Into the Deadly Car

'The Crash' tells varying accounts of what happened to Dominic Russo and Davion Flanagan when they were killed by Mackenzie Shi...

Read More