Taika Waititi, Bryce Dallas Howard Among Directors on Star Wars Series The Mandalorian

Jon Favreau revealed Thursday that the forthcoming live-action Star Wars TV series will be called The Mandalorian, and now a post on the official Star Wars page has revealed some exciting new names set to direct episodes of the series, as well as a first-look image.

Written and executive produced by Favreau, as previously announced, the first episode of The Mandalorian, the franchise’s first-ever live-action series, will be directed by Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels alum Dave Filoni. From there, additional episode directors include: Jessica Jones’ Deborah Chow; Dope and HBO’s Confirmation helmer Rick Famuyiwa; Jurassic World star Bryce Dallas Howard, making her TV directing debut; and Taika Waititi, director of Thor: Ragnarok and the forthcoming FX series adaptation of What We Do in the Shadows.

Waititi is perhaps the buzziest name announced to date for The Mandalorian. An oddball New Zealand director who made a stellar big-budget breakthrough with Thor: Ragnarok, Waititi brought a unique comedic sensibility to his Marvel Cinematic Universe installment that revitalized one of the less exciting superheroes in the franchise. Howard, who so far only has directing credits on M83’s “Claudia Lewis” video and a few shorts to her name, is also an intriguing choice for the series. And Star Wars has never been known for its diversity behind the camera, so it’s nice to see the franchise’s first live-action series sporting such an inclusive slate of directors.

The Star Wars website also shared a first-look image, which Favreau reposted on Instagram, presumably revealing the titular Mandalorian “warrior” whom he teased in his series title announcement yesterday. The image reveals a gun-carrying, bronze armor-clad figure on the planet of Mandalore, where heroes like Jango and Boba Fett once fought.

The Star Wars website news post reveals that production has started on The Mandalorian, although it’s not yet confirmed when the series will premiere on Disney’s still-forthcoming streaming service. With the service set to launch next fall, and Star Wars: Episode IX set to reach theaters on Dec. 20, 2019, though, we can likely expect The Mandalorian to land sometime in between.