The Mandalorian season 3 wrapped up Din Djarin’s battle against Moff Gideon neatly, but it also paved the way for a much bigger villain to wreak havoc in the The Mandalorian movie. Grand iral Thrawn is gearing up to make his return to the Star Wars universe after being exiled by Ezra Bridger in the Star Wars Rebels series finale. He already appears to be the main antagonist of the live-action Ahsoka series, but he's also expected to return in future Star Wars installments of the New Republic era as he attempts to prematurely resurrect the Empire.

Similarly to Palpatine before him and Snoke after, The Mandalorian season 3 sets up Thrawn as the next major villain in the Star Wars universe. While barely anything has been revealed about Dave Filoni’s The Mandalorian movie, the pattern of events for Thrawn is beginning to mimic Timothy Zahn’s original novels that featured the character in Star Wars Legends. Given Filoni also consulted with Zahn regarding Lars Mikkelsen as Thrawn and how the character should be portrayed, it seems like Disney’s Star Wars is taking a serious leaf out of Thrawn’s original book.

Heir To The Empire Should Be The Mandalorian Movie Title

If Filoni is looking to adjust and reuse Zahn’s original plot for Thrawn, then it seems fitting for him to name The Mandalorian movie after Zahn’s books. The Mandalorian: Heir to the Empire would bridge the gap between older readers who grew up with Zahn’s books as well as newer audiences who have only experienced Din Djarin and Grogu. Even if Thrawn loses in The Mandalorian movie, “Heir to the Empire” still perfectly encapsulates his goals as an antagonist, much like how Avengers: Infinity War foretold Thanos’ goal of collecting the Infinity Stones.

What Happened In Star Wars' Heir To The Empire Book

The signs that Filoni is looking to mirror Heir to the Empire’s plot keep increasing. In Heir to the Empire, Thrawn was stationed elsewhere in the galaxy during the fall of the Empire, and in Rebels, Thrawn was transported to the Unknown Regions of the galaxy via Star Wars’ hyperspace whales, also known as purrgil. In both cases, Thrawn will return to hatch a brilliant and well-thought-out plan to catch the New Republic off guard. But while Zahn’s Heir to the Empire followed Luke, Han, and Leia’s attempts to stop Thrawn, Lucasfilm appears to be setting up Din Djarin, Ahsoka Tano, and Bo-Katan as the heroes of the movie.

Like The Mandalorian season 3’s Elia Kane, Zahn’s Heir to the Empire also featured a spy within the New Republic—known as Delta Source—that was leaking their actions to the Imperial Remnants. Heir to the Empire culminated with Thrawn attempting to hijack and steal warships from the New Republic’s shipyard on Sluis Van. However, The Mandalorian movie may play out much differently, given the New Republic is far weaker in Star Wars canon than it was in Legends. But if The Mandalorian movie is meant to parallel Zahn’s Heir to the Empire, then Thrawn will surely cook up trouble for Din Djarin and the other heroes in Star Wars.