The Mandalorian’s New Release Returns To An Abandoned George Lucas Star Wars TV Show

Published Nov 12, 2026, 9:38 AM EST

Once head of Screen Rant's Star Wars coverage, Tom's career began as a fan of the fantasy and sci-fi genres, and his love of major franchises has ultimately led to a decade-long career. He'd had the privilege of interviewing writers, authors, directors, actors, stunt coordinators, and VFX artists on a staggering number of his favorite franchises, including Star Wars, the MCU, Stranger Things, Halo, Foundation, and more. He's conducted set visits in the UK, attending major comic cons in New York and London, and reported at Star Wars Celebration 2023 as press. You can find him on Twitter @TomABacon, on LinkedIn @tabacon, or on Muckrack under tombacon.

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Six months after The Mandalorian and Grogu brought Pedro Pascal's Din Djarin and his ward Grogu to the big screen, they're back in a new Star Wars release. Since 2019, after the end of the sequel trilogy, we've been in The Mandalorian era of Star Wars. The Lucasfilm TV show was essentially Disney+'s flagship series, and it's so very appropriate that the beloved pair brought the franchise back to the big screen ahead of next year's Starfighter. The Mandalorian and Grogu's box office may have been disappointing, but the film has found new success on Disney+.

Lucasfilm has now published The Art of The Mandalorian and Grogu, a celebration of the series that showcases its development. These art books are always must-buys, and this is no exception; it features stunning double-page spreads of everything from the Hutt homeworld of Nal Hutta to alternate designs for characters and aliens. Most delightfully, The Art of The Mandalorian and Grogu also reveals a George Lucas subplot that was sadly abandoned (but seems to have been incorporated into a tie-in Smugglers' Run mission at Galaxy's Edge).

The Mandalorian and Grogu Almost Took Star Wars Back To Coruscant (With A Difference)

It seems scripts for The Mandalorian and Grogu initially took the pair to the galactic capital of Coruscant itself, where they'd have confronted Imperial agents on Level 1313. This would have been a very different Coruscant to the city-planet seen in the prequels; the lower levels of Coruscant are a hive of scum and villainy, and it makes sense that the Empire would be active there. Indeed, I'd even suggest this was explicitly set up in The Mandalorian season 3, in a subplot involving Imperial spy Elia Kane.

In the end, this idea was dropped. Jon Favreau felt the New Republic military would handle Imperial unrest on Coruscant themselves, rather than sending a bounty hunter. While I understand his argument, I'm not entirely convinced, given the New Republic did ultimately lose Coruscant to Imperial sympathizers (it's why the city-planet was no longer galactic capital by The Force Awakens). Amusingly, there is still a Coruscant mission in The Mandalorian and Grogu's Smuggler's Run tie-in, so the idea wasn't fully abandoned.

Level 1313 is a matter of Star Wars legend. Back in the early 2000s, George Lucas planned to release the first-ever live-action Star Wars TV show, Underworld, which would have been set on level 1313. This would have explored the galaxy's seedier underbelly, albeit set during the Dark Times of the Empire's reign. Dave Filoni recreated level 1313 in animated form in The Clone Wars season 7, and it seems we almost got this abandoned Lucas concept in The Mandalorian and Grogu as well.

You can buy The Art of The Mandalorian and Grogu here.

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