I don’t think anyone expected iconoclastic German director Werner Herzog to be playing a swashbuckling hero in the upcoming live-action Star Wars TV show The Mandalorian, but in a new interview, Herzog himself has shed the tiniest bit of light on his role in the new Disney+ series. And yes, he’ll be playing a villain. Read his description of his role below.



Werner Herzog, the director of films like Grizzly Man, Fitzcarraldo, and Aguirre, the Wrath of God, has lent his voice to several projects over the years (including a surprising number of animated comedy shows), but he also memorably played the villain known as “The Zec” in the 2012 Tom Cruise action movie Jack Reacher. Now he’ll adopt a new villain persona in a galaxy far, far away.

Speaking with IndieWire, Herzog explained:

“Now this is not a secret anymore, a small part, real small part, in The Mandalorian, the Star Wars sequel or whatever you call it. I like to [act] because I know I’m good on screen, but only if I have to play a real villain.”

We’ve previously speculated about Herzog possibly playing some sort of crime boss, and /Film’s Peter Sciretta has a wild theory about him potentially playing an older version of Boba Fett who survived the encounter in the Sarlacc pit, but this is the first time we’ve heard confirmation that he’ll be playing a baddie. The fact that Herzog clarifies the size of his role as a “real small part” makes me wonder if he’s going to be introduced and then immediately killed off. I can’t fathom him devoting his time to multiple seasons of a show like this, and currently he’s only listed as appearing in the first episode of The Mandalorian on IMDb. But think about it: joining a Star Wars property only to be immediately killed off sounds kinda perfect for Herzog, doesn’t it?

Here’s the description of The Mandalorian, which will debut on Disney+ sometime in Fall 2019: