Daily Times

“The Mandalorian” creator Jon Favreau and cast members debuted the “Star Wars” series on Wednesday at a red-carpet event for fans and promised more surprises following the reveal of an unexpected new character in the first episode.

“The Mandalorian,” which runs on Walt Disney Co’s new Disney+ streaming service, is the first live-action series set in the galaxy far, far away that was first seen on screen in the 1977 movie “Star Wars”.

The series stars Pedro Pascal as a bounty hunter sent on a sensitive mission. The first season will run for eight episodes.

“There are lots of surprises in the show. Part of what is fun about doing eight episodes is that each one could have a surprise and twist,” Favreau said in an interview at the premiere in Hollywood.

The audience was composed largely of fans, some of whom carried bounty-hunter helmets.

The first episode, released on Tuesday, ended with the Mandalorian finding a character that looks like a baby version of the Jedi Master Yoda from “Star Wars” films. It was unclear how the baby may be related to Yoda or fit into the story, sparking debate among fans.

Favreau and cast members did not shed much light at Wednesday’s premiere. Disney is releasing “Mandalorian” episodes weekly starting on Friday.

“You have to see the shows to figure out who this baby Yoda really is, and what he is all about, or even if he is really a baby Yoda,” said Carl Weathers, who plays Greef Carga, a man who gives bounty assignments to the Mandalorian.

“He has his own name, and he is very interesting and very knowledgeable and very cute,” Weathers said. “I never use that word, but he is a cute little guy.”