What the End of The Mandalorian's Season 2 Premiere Means For the Show

In the final seconds of The Mandalorian's season two premiere, we see a mysterious man watching the Mandalorian drive away on Tatooine. If you're wondering who that man is, the episode never outright says, but there are quite a few clues that suggest it's a notorious character making his TV debut.

It's almost a sure thing that the bald, helmet-less figure seen in the episode's final moments is none other than Boba Fett, the bounty hunter who famously appeared in the original Star Wars trilogy. Back then — which would be a few years ago in The Mandalorian's timeline — Boba Fett was responsible for turning Han Solo over to Jabba the Hutt. Unfortunately for him, he got caught up on the wrong side of things when Luke, Leia, and their friends arrived to rescue Han, and he apparently met his end by being cast into the sarlacc pit. Judging by the end of this episode, though, he's somehow gotten out, and, we can assume, is set to be a formidable villain.

Although it's not confirmed on screen that this mysterious figure is Boba Fett, there are several clues scattered throughout the episode. First and foremost, there's the matter of the Mandalorian armor that Cobb Vanth (Timothy Olyphant's new character, a marshal on Tatooine) wears and that Din Djarin wants to return to the Mandalorian people. It bears a strong resemblance to the pieces worn by Boba Fett, and, in the Aftermath novels that first introduce the character, it's made clear that the armor is Boba Fett's, scavenged somehow by the Jawas. The same novels also revealed Boba Fett somehow survived and escaped; since it looks like this season of The Mandalorian is drawing on some of those plotlines, it makes sense that Boba Fett's escape is part of the season too.

There's also the episode's monster of the week: a krayt dragon that's been living in the sarlacc pit after killing the sarlacc beast that used to live there. We can assume that the sarlacc pit was the same one Boba Fett fell into, which is yet another subtle reminder of his presence in the story without ever actually saying his name. Star Wars trivia buffs will also recognize the actor playing the mysterious man at the end of the episode: Temuera Morrison, who played Boba Fett's clone "father" Jango Fett in Attack of the Clones and has previously voiced Boba Fett.

To sum it all up: the episode never actually names Boba Fett, but it does everything short of that to heavily hint that he's the man we see at the end. So what does that mean for the season going forward? We know that his armor is now in the possession of Din Djarin — and it looks like he knows that — so the most likely scenario is that he's another villain in pursuit of our heroes. With Moff Gideon also still out there, there's the possibility of an alliance between the show's two biggest villains. Whatever happens, we can't wait to see how this classic character gets folded into The Mandalorian throughout season two!