Werner Herzog Is Probably In The Star Wars TV Series 'The Mandalorian'

Director Werner Herzog is known not only for his mesmerizing documentaries and arthouse narratives, but also his trademark ominous voice. Jack Reacher made substantial use of his menacing presence as a villain, and now it seems like he's been all but officially confirmed to be involved in The Mandalorian, Jon Favreau's live-action Star Wars series. Werner Herzog in Star Wars? Learn more after the jump.

Last week we reported this rumor buried within in a roundup of bits. Here is what Ethan Anderton wrote on October 2, 2018:

IndieWire recently interviewed Herzog and the director revealed that he was going to be in "a big franchise film, about which I'm not supposed to say anything." However, he did note that the codename was Huckleberry. Funnily enough, Making Star Wars has learned that the codename for the live-action Star Wars series is Project Huckleberry. Could Werner Herzog end up with a role in the Star Wars series? Sure, he says he's in a big franchise film and not a television series, but maybe he misspoke. The prospect of Herzog being in the Star Wars universe is so juicy. He would make a hell of a villain, especially some kind of crime boss. So we hope this a rumor ends up being true.

At the time, it had been rumored that The Mandalorian was shooting under the secret working title of Project Huckleberry, but that rumor only originated because film crew sporting Huckleberry badges were spotted out to lunch at a food spot near the filming. But today, Making Star Wars has spotted the badge on the crew members on the actual set of the Star Wars television production, confirming the suspicions. So while Disney has yet to announce any of the cast of this upcoming streaming TV series, this seems to confirm that Werner Herzog is somehow involved.

I'm going to throw this insane fan theory out there: what if Herzog is playing an old man version of Boba Fett? Now you're probably saying that Boba Fett is dead, and you aren't wrong– we did see him fall into the Sarlacc Pit in Return of the Jedi. But according to Star Wars historian JW Winzler, even Star Wars creator George Lucas apparently believed that Fett escaped the Sarlacc Pit.

In the canonically recognized novel Star Wars: Aftermath (which takes place years after Return of the Jedi), a couple of travelers discover a Jawa Sandcrawler on the desert of Tatooine containing various junk – including parts of a wrecked Sail Barge, reminiscent of the Barge Jabba the Hutt used for Luke Skywalker's failed execution. More importantly, it contained an abandoned set of Mandalorian armor which has been partially melted and disfigured. Of course, this doesn't 100% confirm Fett is alive in Star Wars canon, but I think it's only a matter of time.

With a Boba Fett standalone movie in development, it will be interesting to see if Disney would even include the Fett character in this television series. And of course, my crazy fan theory could just be that: a crazy fan theory. But if every other Star Wars movie/TV series/game/comic/book is any indication, I imagine this television series will have some appearances from characters we've seen before in this galaxy. It's probably more likely Herzog is playing a menacing person that our hero meets in his underworld adventures.

Strangely, Disney has yet to announce any of the cast for this Star Wars TV series, and I imagine the entire line-up is not full of unknowns. MSW also recently heard that John Leguizamo might be involved in the production, which could make sense since he worked with Mandalorian producer Jon Favreau on earlier films.

Funnily enough, Stephen Colbert was advocating for Disney to hire Werner Herzog to direct Star Wars Episode 9 before JJ Abrams took the helm and released the above video which went viral in September of last year.

Here's more about The Mandalorian:

After the stories of Jango and Boba Fett, another warrior emerges in the Star Wars universe. The Mandalorian is set after the fall of the Empire and before the emergence of the First Order. We follow the travails of a lone gunfighter in the outer reaches of the galaxy far from the authority of the New Republic. The series will be written and executive produced by Emmy-nominated producer and actor Jon Favreau, as previously announced, with Dave Filoni (Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels) directing the first episode. Additional episodic directors include Deborah Chow (Jessica Jones), Rick Famuyiwa (Dope), Bryce Dallas Howard (Solemates), and Taika Waititi (Thor: Ragnarok). It will be executive produced by Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni, Kathleen Kennedy, and Colin Wilson. Karen Gilchrist will serve as co-executive producer.