Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge has always been designed to feel like a place where anything could happen. The whole premise of Black Spire Outpost is that you are stepping into a living, breathing corner of the galaxy where the stories of Star Wars are playing out around you in real time.
Most days that means encountering first-order stormtroopers, running into Hondo Ohnaka, or watching Rey and Kylo Ren move through the crowds. It is immersive and it works.
And then sometimes Pedro Pascal shows up dressed as Din Djarin and the whole thing goes to another level entirely.
The actor who plays the Mandalorian in the beloved Disney+ series The Mandalorian appeared at Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge at Disneyland, dressed in full Mandalorian armor, for what became one of the more memorable guest surprise moments the park has produced in recent memory.
He spent time doing a meet-and-greet in character before eventually revealing his face to guests, which produced exactly the kind of reaction you would expect: complete disbelief and the kind of screaming that makes people stop and ask what is happening.
The Star Wars official TikTok account shared the moment with a caption that also served as a reminder for the upcoming film: “Pedro Pascal creates the surprise of a lifetime at Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge at Disneyland. Experience Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu in theaters and IMAX May 22. Tap the link in bio to get tickets now.”
@starwars Pedro Pascal creates the surprise of a lifetime at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland. Experience Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu in theaters and IMAX May 22. Tap the link in bio to get tickets now.
The timing of the visit was not accidental. A lot has been happening in Galaxy's Edge at Disneyland around the arrival of The Mandalorian and Grogu in theaters, and Pascal's surprise appearance was part of a larger moment for the land.
The New Projection Show and a Night Worth Remembering
A new nighttime projection show has arrived in Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge called The Curious Child. It runs following Shadows of Memory: A Skywalker Saga, using the spires around the Millennium Falcon in Batuu as its canvas.
The show centers on Grogu testing his power to recall fond memories of his adventures with the Mandalorian, and it is exactly the kind of intimate, character-focused experience that the Galaxy's Edge environment does particularly well after dark.
For the very first performance of The Curious Child, the people behind The Mandalorian and Grogu were there to watch it. Jon Favreau, Sigourney Weaver, Pedro Pascal, and Dave Filoni arrived just before the start of Shadows of Memory: A Skywalker Saga. The crowd in the area, which had no idea who was about to show up, went predictably wild.
They stayed for both projection shows. At the end of The Curious Child, all four of them waved at the fans surrounding them. Pascal was caught on video holding and kissing a plush Grogu that someone had lobbed up to him from the crowd below. Daps Magic was on hand that night and captured the whole thing on video.
The Curious Child is not the only update Galaxy's Edge has received ahead of the May 22nd theatrical release. Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run is getting new adventures and expanded roles for the crew, adding to the experience of piloting the Falcon for guests visiting the land.
This comes on top of a broader timeline expansion at the Disneyland version of Galaxy's Edge, which has added more stories to the land, introduced Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa, Han Solo, and Darth Vader with his stormtroopers to Black Spire Outpost, updated props and shops, and brought iconic John Williams Star Wars music into the ambient soundscape throughout the land.
What Pedro Pascal Has Said About His Future as Din Djarin
With The Mandalorian and Grogu arriving in theaters on May 22nd and no Disney+ seasons currently confirmed beyond that, some fans have been asking what comes next for Din Djarin, and by extension, for Pascal's relationship with the franchise. He has been playing the character since The Mandalorian launched Disney+ in 2019, and the series became Lucasfilm's most commercially and culturally successful post-sequel trilogy project.
Pascal addressed the question directly during the press tour for the film. When asked by Discussing Film about whether Din Djarin still has a future in the Star Wars universe, he said: “You know, age is a real thing. Whatever my body can do, and however long people want to experience these stories with these characters, is how long I want it to last.”
At a separate Q&A, he put it another way: “It's the longest creative relationship I've had, it's the character that I've played the longest. Hopefully, I get to continue playing him for as long as my body, or as many bodies as we put into the suit, can take it.”
Sigourney Weaver, who joins the film as New Republic officer Colonel Ward, has also made her own feelings about a sequel clear. “In an ideal world, I'd love to make another Mandalorian and Grogu, because it was so much fun to work with Jon Favreau,” she said, via Geek Tyrant.
“And I'm a huge admirer, and just to be in this world, for me, it was cool. And I really like my character, and I'd love to do more work with Pedro and his sidekick. So, I think that, secretly, we're all hoping maybe this could produce another one that would take us further into the Outer Rim and more adventures.”
The film is currently projected to gross more than $80 million domestically in its opening weekend, with the four-day Memorial Day frame potentially climbing past $95 million if family turnout holds.
How All of This Connects to a Disney Vacation
For guests planning a Disneyland visit in the weeks around the Mandalorian and Grogu theatrical release, Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge is in one of its most active and content-rich states in years. The Curious Child projection show runs after dark and represents a new reason to stay in the land into the evening.
The Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run updates give returning guests a meaningfully different version of an attraction they may have ridden many times. The expanded character roster including classic trilogy characters means the land offers a wider range of Star Wars stories simultaneously than it ever has before.
The surprise Pedro Pascal appearance is a reminder that Galaxy's Edge at its best is not a static environment. The land responds to cultural moments in the Star Wars universe and the timing of the Mandalorian and Grogu theatrical release has produced one of the more active periods for new content and experiences in the land's history.
For guests who have been waiting to visit Galaxy's Edge, or who have visited before but found the experience thinner than they hoped, this is a strong window to go. The new projection show, the Smugglers Run updates, and the broader land expansion represent a version of the experience that is meaningfully different from what it was even a year ago.
If The Mandalorian and Grogu is on your radar for May 22nd and a Disneyland trip is in your plans, check the current Galaxy's Edge entertainment schedule before you visit so you know when The Curious Child projection show runs and what time Shadows of Memory: A Skywalker Saga begins.
Both shows run at night and the land feels completely different after dark during this period. Make sure your Disneyland day accounts for an evening in Galaxy's Edge while the new content is running.
