Oscar-winning director joins Star Wars universe with cameo in The Mandalorian and Grogu

Martin Scorsese has taken an unexpected detour into a galaxy far, far away, as the trailer for Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu revealed a cameo by the Oscar winner.

The Mandalorian and Grogu is a continuation of The Mandalorian, the hit Disney+ series created by Jon Favreau that debuted in 2019.

The series, set after the fall of the Galactic Empire, follows Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal), a solitary bounty hunter operating on the fringes of the New Republic, and Grogu, the Force-sensitive child he is initially tasked with delivering to Imperial clients.

The Mandalorian and Grogu will take place after the events of 1983’s Return of the Jedi and follow Pascal’s character after his recruitment by the New Republic to stamp out the last remains of the evil Empire.

After a new trailer was released for the film on Tuesday, some fans seemed to recognise the voice of an Ardennian shopkeeper in one shot.

“This is the weirdest thing about the Mandalorian trailer. Why is Martin Scorsese voicing an alien in Star Wars?” asked one user on X.

In the scene, Pascal’s Mandalorian approaches an Ardennian shopkeeper for information, to which the latter says: “For that price, I’ll tell you whatever you want.”

As the Mandalorian explains he is “looking for a Hutt”, Scorsese’s shopkeeper shuts the door saying: “Closed for the night! Thank you.”

Scorsese’s voice cameo was confirmed by the official Star Wars account on X, with a video of the scene and a caption that read: “Absolute cinema.”

The line seems to reference the Killers of the Flower Moon director’s 2019 comment in which he famously compared blockbuster films, like those in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, to theme parks.

“I don’t see them. I tried, you know? But that’s not cinema,” Scorsese told Empire magazine at the time. “Honestly, the closest I can think of them, as well made as they are, with actors doing the best they can under the circumstances, is theme parks. It isn’t the cinema of human beings trying to convey emotional, psychological experiences to another human being.”

The new film also stars Sigourney Weaver and The Bear’s Jeremy Allen White as Rotta the Hutt, the son of Jabba the Hutt.

The first trailer for the film was released last year in September and ended up dividing fans, with some complaining that it looked more like a TV show and others expressing excitement about having Star Wars back in cinemas.

The Mandalorian and Grogu will be released in theatres on 22 May 2026.