Din Djarin Isn’t the Main Character of ‘The Mandalorian’ Anymore, Says the Director

I’m hoping you’re caught up with everything going on in The Mandalorian Season 3 before reading this article, as if not, it might sound odd to you. But yes, you have read that correctly.

Din Djarin, aka Mando – isn’t the main character of his own show, The Mandalorian, anymore. Throughout the third season, Pedro Pascal’s character, and his little buddy Grogu, are always present but somewhat take the back seat for other characters to thrive.

Now, it’s starting to feel as if Mando is a side character in Bo-Katan Kryze’s story, and the show’s director, Rick Famuyiwa, somewhat confirmed it. Here’s what’s going on, in short.

The Mandalorian Season 3 so far

In the first two seasons of The Mandalorian, we’ve followed Din Djarin on his quest to save Grogu (aka Baby Yoda) and then bring him back to his kind – the Jedi. The show was sweet, action-filled, and emotional, and Din and Grogu carried the show.

Then came Season 3, which changed the narrative. Mando and Grogu are still together, Grogu is a foundling, and both are members of the Armorer’s Mandalorian covert. Joining them on their journey is Bo-Katan Kryze, portrayed by Katee Sackhoff – a fan-favorite character who slowly but surely, it seems, became the show’s titular character.

Sure, Din Djarin and Grogu are there, going to Mandalore, fighting some rogue droids, etc., but their story is actually a side story to Bo-Katan’s. And, now that Din Djarin has willingly given the Darksaber to Kryze – and the Armorer openly proclaimed Bo-Katan to be the one to unite and save Mandalore – it seems that she’ll be the main character.

Some fans – like myself, I must admit- were annoyed with the change of narrative. I mean, we fell in love with this show because of Din and Grogu, and now, we see them fade into the backstory throughout this season. What’s going on here?

Well, the director of the show might have the answers.

What does Rick Famuyiwa say about the narrative change?

The director, and one of the producers of The Mandalorian, Rick Famuyiwa, answered some questions about The Mandalorian’s future and why Din Djarin is no longer the titular Mandalorian.

Speaking to IGN, Famuyiwa noted that the journey has been long – so what does the title of the show even mean anymore?

“I think that’s been interesting as we’ve been on the journey of the show, and now that we’re at this point, is that, what does that title mean?” – Famuyiwa said, then continued:

“Who is the Mandalorian at this point? And so I think it could be anyone. And I think that’s what they’re trying to define in many ways, is what does that mean to be Mandalorian?”

So, if you’re expecting the show to continue what was built throughout the first two seasons, you better check yourself. The Mandalorian could be anyone; by the looks of it, that anyone is Bo-Katan Kryze.

We didn’t need Din Djarin to be the one who’ll unite Mandalore, but I was hoping to see him take more of a center stage instead of just fading into the back, becoming a side character to someone else’s story in his own show.

Don’t get me wrong – Bo-Katan is awesome – but I’m just not a big fan of that change. Perhaps it’s too early to tell, as there are still a couple of episodes left in the season – and a movie is coming to the big screen, directed by Dave Filoni, connecting Mando, Ahsoka Tano, Boba Fett, and (likely) the Skeleton Crew – to culminate their stories.

So, maybe there’s a big twist waiting for us somewhere in the future. We’ll just have to wait and see, I guess.