'The Mandalorian' S2 confirmed to launch 30 October

The second season of The Mandalorian will begin streaming on 30 October, Disney+ has announced.

The return of the hit Star Wars series was announced via Disney’s many social media accounts with the caption: ‘This is the day’, a pun on the Mandalorian creed’s catchphrase ‘This is the way’.

The news comes as fan anticipation for a trailer reaches fever pitch online. The Jon Favreau-led series was a launch title for the Disney streaming service when it launched in North America in November 2019, and in Europe in March 2020.

A second season had already wrapped principal photography before the coronavirus pandemic shut down film and television production around the world, but Disney remained confident that it wouldn’t delay the VFX heavy show.

“We were lucky enough to have finished photography before the lock down,” Favreau explained during the ATX Television Festival in June.

“Thanks to how technology-forward Lucasfilm and ILM (Industrial Light and Magic) are, we have been able to do all of our visual effects and editing and postproduction remotely through systems that had been set up by those companies for us.”

He went on: “As we explore partnering with new filmmakers and having new characters and going deeper with the characters we already have, it's really been very fun and fulfilling and I hope people are having as much fun seeing it as we are having making it.

“We are building what people loved about the first season. It doesn’t feel like the next season, it feels like we’re continuing.”

New directors for the show on the second season include Sin City helmsman Robert Rodriguez and Peyton Reed, who directed Ant-Man and its sequel Ant-Man and The Wasp for Marvel.

The Mandalorian stars Pedro Pascal in the title role, with Gina Carano and Carl Weathers in supporting roles. Joining the cast will be Rosario Dawson, Justified's Timothy Olyphant, Temuera Morrison and Aliens and Terminator star Michael Biehn.

Read more: What to expect from The Mandalorian S2

Though not officially confirmed, Dawson is set to play Clone Wars favourite Ahsoka Tano, while it's been reported that Morrison, who played Jango Fett in the Star Wars prequels, will be playing iconic bounty hunter Boba Fett.