The Mandalorian has been a huge hit for Disney Plus, with Baby Yoda proving a cultural force to be reckoned with. In fact it's done so well that not only is Disney gearing up to release season two, it's already commissioned a third season of the show.

It's worth remembering that this isn't the only live action Star Wars series on the way to Disney+. Disney is also working on a Rogue One prequel series starring Diego Luna and Alan Tudyk, and Ewan McGregor will reprise his role as Obi-Wan Kenobi in yet another spin-off series after that, while Russian Doll creator Leslye Headland is working on her own untitled series after that.

Check out our full guide to all the Star Wars content on Disney+ for more on what you can watch now, and what's on the way.

When does Mandalorian season two start?

Season two will start streaming from 30 October. Like the first season, episodes will air once a week, so don't expect the whole season all at once.

Season three is even on the way too, with pre-production begun. Variety first reported that Jon Favreau has been writing the scripts "for a while" and that the art department is in full swing too, so it sounds like Mando season three is on track for 2021.

How many episodes are there?

There are eight episodes in the first season, and we're getting the same again in season two.

Is there a trailer?

Yes - the first trailer for season two of The Mandalorian is now here. You can watch it (and fawn over Baby Yoda) below:

Who's in the cast?

Playing the lead role is Pedro Pascal, best known as Prince Oberyn in Game of Thrones and Javier Pena in Narcos, and set to star in the upcoming Wonder Woman 1984.

We know he'll be joined by returning actors including former MMA star Gina Carano, Rocky's Carl Weathers, and Breaking Bad’s Giancarlo Esposito.

We're slowly hearing more about season two's new cast members, but there have been a few huge bits of news so far.

First, Rosario Dawson has apparently been cast for a role in season two. That would be exciting enough, but even better is who she's playing: Ahsoka Tano, Anakin Skywalker's Jedi Padawan from the animated Clone Wars show (which recently finished its seventh and final season on Disney+).

She won't be the only familiar face from Clone Wars either. Katee Sackhoff is reportedly set to play Bo-Katan Kryze, a Mandalorian warrior who she previously voiced in both the Clone Wars and Rebels series - with a pretty prominent role in Clone Wars' final arc. She's also important because she once wielded the Darksaber - the rather snazzy Mandalorian energy sword seen briefly in season one's finale.

Temuera Morrison is even expected to make a return appearance. That name might not be familiar, but it's important - he played Jango Fett in the Attack of the Clones film, and it's been reported that he'll have a "small role" in The Mandalorian's second season as the infamous bounty hunter Boba Fett (Jango's clone/son, it's complicated). Fett obviously died in the Sarlacc Pit in Return of the Jedi, but dying rarely stops anyone in the Star Wars universe for too long.

Timothy Olyphant is also set to join for the second season, but this is where things get complicated - and we risk hitting spoiler territory. That's because he's expected to be wearing Boba Fett's armour, even though he's not playing Fett himself.

Slashfilm reports he'll be playing Cobb Vanth, a character from Chuck Wendig’s Aftermath novels. He's the sheriff of a town on Tatooine, and wears a set of Mandalorian armour scavenged from the wreckage of Jabba the Hutt's sail barge (wrecked in Return of the Jedi). You can guess who that once belonged to, and gives us a clue as to how Morrison's Fett appearance might play into things.

Just as excitingly, Terminator and Aliens star Michael Biehn will also join the second season. His role is mostly unknown, but it will be another bounty hunter, and this will be his highest profile role since 2007's Grindhouse.

It's also rumoured that WWE star Sasha Banks will be joining the show for its second season. No word on how major her part is though, so this could be anything from a new co-lead down to a single-episode cameo.

Who will write and direct season two?

Behind the cameras, Jon Favreau, who's a dab hand at both producing and directing and brought us Iron Man and The Jungle Book, is the showrunner and lead writer for the series, though he's ably assisted by Star Wars: Clone Wars TV veteran Dave Filoni.

In season two Favreau will make his directorial debut for the series, with others set to include Rick Famuyiwa returning from season one, Carl Weathers stepping behind the camera, and both Robert Rodriguez (Sin City, Planet Terror) and Peyton Reed (Ant-Man) confirmed to direct at least one episode each.

What to expect from season two

As the trailer shows, it looks like Mando will be trying to reunite Baby Yoda with its own kind, as ordered by the Armorer (as she puts it, "this is the way"). However, it looks as if the two have a strong bond now, so this may cause some issues and conflicts with those that The Mandalorian encounters.

Entertainment Weekly's first look at the new series also gives us an idea of what to expect from the upcoming series.

“We start very directly after the first [season] and he's going into very dangerous territory," star Pedro Pascal of the Mando's situation as the season kicks off. "He is very much a passenger to the experience in unexpected ways — not knowing what’s to come, not knowing how much or how best to protect the Child. We don’t know how far he will go to do that, and they’re finding new ways to push the envelope.”

There'll certainly be a bigger role for Giancarlo Esposito, who appeared in the first season's finale as villain Gideon.

“I’ll be going toe-to-toe with Mando,” said Esposito. “It’s an iconic battle. I want to disarm him mentally as well. Who knows? Maybe there’s an opportunity to get him to fight some battles for me. You may think I’m a villain, but I’m trying to harness some energy and some powers for a path that could be best for all. You'll get to see him be somewhat diplomatic and more of a manipulator."

More specifically, we know that Gideon will get to command “a larger vehicle, hint-hint,” will have at least one scene alone with Baby Yoda, and will be digging deeper into the Darksaber: “It’s so exciting for me to be in a show where I can wear a cape and own it, and where I can have a lightsaber and really own it.”

That's still all pretty vague, but Gina Carano confirmed one more thing: it's gonna be good.

“I have no question fans are going to like this season even more — everything’s in there,” Carano said. “If you’re a Star Wars fan, you’re going to get to see things you’ve always wanted to see.”