Mandalorian IMAX previews on May 7–8

Star Wars is back in movie theaters in a way Disney clearly wants people to feel, not just know. The new move was a set of IMAX fan events around May 4 that showed the opening chunk of The Mandalorian and Grogu before the film’s full release on May 22, 2026. That matters because this movie is doing two jobs at once — continuing a Disney+ story and proving it can play like a big-screen event. Lucasfilm’s whole campaign now looks built around that second point. (abc7.com) ### What actually happened? On May 4, select IMAX theaters around the world screened the first 25 to 30 minutes of The Mandalorian and Grogu for fans. ABC’s entertainment coverage described it as a global IMAX preview tied to Star Wars Day, with some locations also getting surprise appearances. The Hollywood Reporter framed the same event as a Lucasfilm fan push anchored by more than 25 minutes of new footage. (abc7.com) ### Was this just a Japan thing? No — but Japan was one of the clearest places where the marketing showed its hand. The Japanese official site for the film has been pushing IMAX hard, including a dedicated IMAX promo, premium-format posters, and language stressing that this is the first Star Wars film “Filmed(abc7.com)or filmmakers expected onstage. (starwars.disney.co.jp) ### Why lean so hard on IMAX? Because Lucasfilm needs this movie to read as cinema, not as “that Disney+ show got a movie.” The Japanese campaign spells that out pretty bluntly — bigger screen, expanded aspect ratio, premium sound, and a format-specific promo built around Grogu literally widening the frame. StarWars.com is doing the sa(starwars.disney.co.jp)rmat is part of the pitch, not an add-on. (starwars.disney.co.jp) ### Why is that a bigger deal for this movie? The Mandalorian started as the flagship Disney+ Star Wars series. Now its characters are being used to restart Star Wars as a theatrical habit after a long movie gap. Disney’s Japanese site says this is the franchise’s return to theaters for the first time since The Rise of Skywalker in 201(starwars.disney.co.jp)ss like a bonus and more like a confidence test. (starwars.disney.co.jp) ### What are they showing people? Not just a trailer. Reports from the fan events say audiences saw the opening stretch of the movie, and ABC also tied the screenings to a newly released clip showing Mando and Grogu racing on an AT-RT while dodging AT-AT walkers. That is a very specific choice — Lucasfilm is selling motion, scale, and spectacle first. It wants viewers to leave thinking this thing belongs on a giant screen. (abc7.com) ### Does the movie have the cast to support that push? Yes. The official film pages list Jon Favreau directing, Dave Filoni producing, Pedro Pascal returning as Din Djarin, and Sigourney Weaver in a new role. Celebration coverage from Japan also showed Lucasfilm already using Favreau, Pascal, and Weaver as pa(abc7.com)o theatrical tentpole. (starwars.disney.co.jp) ### So what’s the real strategy here? It looks like Disney is using familiar characters as the safest possible way to get Star Wars moviegoing momentum back. A brand-new theatrical era can be risky. Mando and Grogu are not. If fans will show up early for 25 minutes in IMAX, Lucasfilm gets proof that the jump from living-room fandom to premium-ticket theatrical fandom can work. That is the whole test. (hollywoodreporter.com) ### Bottom line The May IMAX previews were not random fan service. They were a trial run for a bigger argument — that The Mandalorian and Grogu is the movie that brings Star Wars back to theaters as an event again. Japan’s promo blitz just made that strategy unusually easy to see. (starwars.disney.co.jp)