The Mandalorian and Grogu villain actor Jonny Coyne says he was originally going to be in "a whole load" of The Mandalorian season 4 episodes
The Mandalorian and Grogu brings everyone's favorite space dad and his tiny green son to the big screen in the first Star Wars movie in seven years, but originally, the plan was to continue the tale of Din Djarin and Din Grogu on the small screen in The Mandalorian season 4.
While Jon Favreau wrote the entirety of the season, after the dual SAG-AFTRA actors' strikes and WGA writers' strikes brought Hollywood to a halt, the plan pivoted to the film instead.
The movie pits Mando and Grogu against an ex-Imperial by the name of Commander Coin, who returns from the sinister Shadow Council scene in The Mandalorian season 3. As it turns out, though, Commander Coin actor Jonny Coyne was actually initially set to be part of season 4, too.
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"There was a time when I was booked to do a whole load of other episodes in season 4," Coyne tells GamesRadar+. "And then that show went away, and then there was an actor strike, and there was COVID, and all sorts of things going on, and it was a difficult time.
"Then I heard the show got canceled, and so I just went, 'Okay, I'll pack my bags, and leave LA,'" he continues. "And then I heard I was going to be part of the movie, and then I heard I was going to be seriously part of the movie, you know, significantly. And then, Jon Favreau called me up and interviewed me, and talked to me about what he plans to do with the character, and I thought, 'Okay, bring it on.'"
But, while Coyne knows he was involved in season 4, he doesn't know if the plan was a similar storyline to what ended up making it to the screen in The Mandalorian and Grogu.
"Never got the scripts for that. Literally, though, the only thing I did with Mando was three lines in the Shadow Council. They weren't particularly significant lines, I don't think so," he says with a laugh, "but somehow it was all an intro to my character into what became the movie. So, I'm thinking maybe there was something along these lines in the series, but who knows."
Sign up for the Total Film NewsletterIn the film, Commander Coin, under the name Lord Janu, runs a gladiatorial fighting ring that features Rotta the Hutt as his star warrior. But, as we learned in The Mandalorian season 3, he's also part of the Imperial Remnants, who work in the shadows to undermine the New Republic.
The Mandalorian and Grogu is in theaters now. For more, check out our guide to all the upcoming Star Wars movies and shows, or our roundup on how to watch the Star Wars movies in order.
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I'm a Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, covering all things film and TV for the site's Total Film section. I previously worked on the Disney magazines team at Immediate Media, and also wrote on the CBeebies, MEGA!, and Star Wars Galaxy titles after graduating with a BA in English.
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