‘The Mandalorian and Grogu’ Director Explains the Origins of Martin Scorsese’s Role

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I was absolutely floored when the second trailer for The Mandalorian and Grogu dropped! Everyone immediately started wondering how Jon Favreau managed to get Martin Scorsese – yes, the Martin Scorsese – to do a voice role. It turns out he plays an Ardennian shopkeeper, which is amazing enough. But get this – people at CinemaCon who saw the first scene said Scorsese’s name was in the opening credits! That suggests he’s going to have a pretty important part in the show, and I can’t wait to see how it all plays out.

I recently learned something fascinating about how The Mandalorian and Grogu landed Martin Scorsese as a director. Apparently, it was Kathleen Kennedy herself who made the connection! Speaking with SFX Magazine, Jon Favreau shared that Kennedy, who’s a seriously accomplished producer with a long history – she worked with legends like George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, and John Milius long before she ran Lucasfilm – was instrumental in bringing Scorsese on board. It really speaks to her relationships in the industry and her ability to get things done.

I’ve met Martin Scorsese a few times and we’re friendly when we see each other. Honestly, I’m a big fan, so I get a little starstruck around him and other filmmakers from his generation who inspired me. Kathleen Kennedy knows him well and has a great relationship with him – she’s a fantastic producer. Because of that, getting him involved was easy. She simply called him, he agreed, and I was able to direct him.

Favreau shared that Scorsese contributed a lot of ad-libbed lines, which really shaped his character, and he believes it will be a highlight of the movie. They recorded all of Scorsese’s performance, allowing the visual effects artists to work with his natural delivery. Favreau was particularly impressed with the results, calling it a really enjoyable and effective part of the story, especially as a fan of both Scorsese and Star Wars.

Martin Scorsese is famous for directing iconic films like Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, The Aviator, The Departed, Hugo, The Wolf of Wall Street, and his recent film, Killers of the Flower Moon. But he also enjoys making brief appearances in his own movies and other people’s projects. He’s had small roles on TV shows like Curb Your Enthusiasm, Entourage, and The Studio. He even provided a voice for the animated film Shark Tale in 2004, which was produced by DreamWorks Animation, a studio connected to his friend Steven Spielberg.

As a fan, I was so excited to hear Martin Scorsese was involved with a Star Wars film, and I really think it happened because of Kathleen Kennedy. She stepped down as President of Lucasfilm in January 2026, and now Dave Filoni and Lynwen Brennan are running things. Even though Scorsese has been critical of Marvel – a universe Jon Favreau helped start with Iron Man – I think he was happy to join Star Wars. He’s known Kathleen Kennedy for a long time, and, of course, he was friends with George Lucas, the creator of the whole saga.

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2026-04-21 04:29