New Zealand filmmaker Taika Waititi will direct at least one episode of upcoming Star Wars TV series The Mandalorian, Lucasfilm has announced.
The show will be set in the period between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, and be written and executive produced by Jon Favreau.
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Alongside Waititi, other directors announced include Jurassic World star Bryce Dallas Howard, Jessica Jones and Better Call Saul director Deborah Chow, Dope writer/director/producer Rick Famuyiwa and The Clone Wars creator Dave Filoni.
"After the stories of Jango and Boba Fett, another warrior emerges... The Mandalorian is set after the fall of the Empire and before the emergence of the First Order," says Lucasfilm.
"We follow the travails of a lone gunfighter in the outer reaches of the galaxy far from the authority of the New Republic."
Lucasfilm also released the first official image from The Mandalorian, which shows a character in a helmet and armour similar to Jango and Boba Fett's.
Waititi's involvement in the Star Wars universe has been speculated on for some time, particularly since Lucasfilm boss Kathleen Kennedy informally offered him a job via Newshub.
Responses to Waititi joining the Star Wars universe have been highly positive.
"Taika Waititi is basically the coolest addition ever, to the point where it's almost disappointing he's only working on the TV show," writes Germain Lussier for Gizmodo.
On Birth Movies Death, Andrew Todd calls Waititi an "absolute hero", and claims he and his colleagues are "performing a Thriller haka with excitement".
The Mandalorian is set to premiere in 2019.
Newshub.
