The Mandalorian and Grogu will bring Din Djarin and The Child to the big screen, and a giant-sized co-star is set to join the beloved Star Wars duo: Jabba the Hutt's son, Rotta the Hutt.
A much younger version of the character, voiced by David Acord, appeared in The Clone Wars, but his buff, adult self will be played by The Bear star Jeremy Allen White.
Talking to Josh Horowitz (via SFFGazette.com), the actor explained how the role has expanded since he first signed on to star and revealed whether he had to channel Jabba in the recording booth. As fun as that would have been to see in a behind-the-scenes featurette, it seems filmmaker Jon Favreau will handle White's Hutt voice in post-production.
"[Director Jon Favreau] made it seem very chill," White recalled. "He was like, 'You're going to play Jabba the Hutt's son. You'll come in, it's just voice stuff, you know, we're not going to take any scans, you're not going to do any of that stuff. Just come in for half a day and read some stuff.'"
"And I was like, 'Yeah, absolutely.' But they hadn't shot any of the movie yet, really, so I'm just kind of reading some stuff, trying to put it together," he continued. "I remember calling him the night before. I was watching some of the movies before, getting ready, but I was like, 'Is there anything in particular you want me to watch or really, like, learn? Is there something I should know?'"
"And he was like, 'No, just come on in and do the thing.' I was like 'What kind of vocal work do you want me to do?' and I was doing some stuff, but he’s like, 'We’re gonna mess with it!' You know. I haven’t seen the film so it’s hard to talk about it too much," the actor added, before revealing that a year went by before Favreau called him back in.
"They shot the movie, and he was like, 'We've got some more stuff for you to do,'" White explained. "And I think I realized that they really fleshed that character out a little bit and I might be in more of that movie than I had realized originally."
The Mandalorian and Grogu was originally set to be The Mandalorian Season 4, so it's hard not to wonder whether the change was part of that creative shift. Either way, all signs point to this movie focusing more on the Hutts after Jabba's demise, with his cousins, the Twins, likely the main antagonists here.
We still don't know whether the franchise has fully moved on from Moff Gideon and his apparent ties to Supreme Leader Snoke's creation, but Imperial remnants are still expected to be part of this story. We also have some pretty big questions about Grogu's origin and how Mando fits into the wider Star Wars narrative.
Dave Filoni is still expected to helm a crossover movie set in this post-Return of the Jedi era, and following The Mandalorian and Grogu and Ahsoka Season 2, we should have a better idea of what it'll look like.
In The Mandalorian and Grogu, the evil Empire has fallen, and Imperial warlords remain scattered throughout the galaxy. As the fledgling New Republic works to protect everything the Rebellion fought for, they have enlisted the help of legendary Mandalorian bounty hunter Din Djarin and his young apprentice Grogu.
The Mandalorian and Grogu is directed by Jon Favreau, who is also producing alongside Kathleen Kennedy, Dave Filoni, and Ian Bryce. The film's music is composed by Ludwig Göransson, who returns to score the franchise after working on the Disney+ TV series.
The Mandalorian and Grogu embark on their most thrilling mission yet in Lucasfilm's The Mandalorian and Grogu, an all-new Star Wars adventure filmed for IMAX and opening exclusively in theaters May 22, 2026.