2022 is shaping up to be an incredible year for Star Wars fans, with Obi-Wan Kenobi, Andor, The Bad Batch, Star Wars: Visions, and The Mandalorian all confirmed or rumoured to be on the way.
Earlier this week, actor Giancarlo Esposito (who plays Moff Gideon in the latter series) got everyone excited when he claimed, "You’ll get [Season 3] soon. I've got a few things in regard to that to do to put some finishing touches on what I do, but I believe it'll be sometime this summer."
We were definitely a little confused by this as shooting has only recently wrapped and The Mandalorian typically premieres in the winter. Well, Collider's Steven Weintraub (via SFFGazette.com) has seemingly cleared things up by saying, "[The Madalorian] Season 3 will arrive end of this year. It will not be streaming this summer."
It's unclear where he's come by this information, but going by past experience, a summer debut was always unlikely for a multitude of reasons.
There's no reason for Lucasfilm to rush The Mandalorian on to Disney+ this summer, especially when Obi-Wan Kenobi doesn't launch until late May. While Andor would have been a good fit for December seeing as Rogue One: A Star Wars Story came out during that month way back in 2016, most rumours suggest the spinoff is targeting an August debut on the streaming service.
Regardless, we expect Lucasfilm's 2022 plans to become clearer at next month's Star Wars Celebration. A number of TV and film panels are expected to take place, so new sneak peeks and premiere dates have to be a given. In the meantime, keep checking SFFGazette.com for more Star Wars updates!