The Child, the breakout puppet star of The Mandalorian. Austin superstar director Robert Rodriguez let the world know (and who wouldn’t?) that he’s directing the adorable tyke in Season 2 of the Disney+ show.

Well, we all knew that Robert Rodriguez is cool, but now he’s Baby Yoda cool. Yup, the Austin moviemaking powerhouse let it drop that he’s part of the director lineup for season 2 of the smash hit series on Disney+, The Mandalorian.

Rodriguez is no stranger to franchises, having built multiple himself (Sin City, Grindhouse, and Spy Kids), and dabbling in others (directing Alita: Battle Angel and producing Predators at his Troublemaker Studios facility in East Austin). But now he’s part of arguably the greatest cinematic legacy of all time, the Star Wars universe.

He let the news drop through Twitter yesterday (May the Fourth – Star Wars day, natch), indicating that he actually shot his episode (or episodes) earlier this year:

The series is headlined by Pedro Pascal as the unnamed and eternally masked Mandalorian, but the breakout star is the Child, a baby from the same species as Jedi Master Yoda. Rumor has it that Season 2 will see the introduction of actress Rosario Dawson as fan favorite character Ahsoka Tano, meaning the potential for a reunion with Rodriguez, who directed her in Sin City and produced the Death Proof segment of Grindhouse, in which she played the tough-as-nails Abernathy.

Rodriguez fills out an already impressive roster of directing talent confirmed for Season 2, with Peyton Reed (Ant-Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp) signing up to join returnees from Season 1 including Rick Famuyiwa (Dope), series creator Jon Favreau, and Disney-era Star Wars mainstay Dave Filoni.

Expect the further adventures of Mando and the Child to arrive later this year.

This article appears in May 1 • 2020.

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The Chronicle's first Culture Desk editor, Richard has reported on Austin's growing film production and appreciation scene for over a decade. A graduate of the universities of York, Stirling, and UT-Austin, a Rotten Tomatoes certified critic, and eight-time Best of Austin winner, he's currently at work on two books and a play.