Disney has just saved their next Star Wars movie. Remarkably, the galaxy far, far away hasn’t had a theatrical release since 2019’s Rise of Skywalker. Now, The Mandalorian and Grogu is set to release almost exactly a year from now (and Disney has just done it a major favor).

Following the first three seasons of The Mandalorian on Disney+, Lucasfilm is set to release The Mandalorian and Grogu in 2026, a full-feature theatrical release starring Pedro Pascal’s Din Djarin and his adoptive son Grogu. Directed by Jon Favreau, next year’s The Mandalorian and Grogu is quite a high-profile film for multiple reasons, though Disney was taking a big risk with its release schedule had it not just delayed Avengers: Doomsday.

Disney Was Taking A Big Risk Putting The Avengers & Star Wars Up Against Each Other

Two High-Profile Movies That Would Have Both Released In May

As of yesterday, Avengers: Doomsday has been officially moved from its May 1st date to December 18th, 2026. Additionally, Avengers: Secret Wars in 2027 has been moved from its original May date to December as well. While the delay should allow Marvel Studios to focus on both crossovers’ overall quality with greater time for post-production, there is a direct positive impact on the Star Wars franchise as well.

Originally, both Avengers: Doomsday and The Mandalorian & Grogu were going to be released in May of next year. This felt incredibly risky for multiple reasons. Not only has Star Wars not been at the box office since 2019’s Rise of Skywalker, but putting two high-profile movies from two of Disney’s biggest franchises in direct compeтιтion with each other felt pretty concerning due to the likelihood of such a major Marvel crossover greatly overshadowing The Mandalorian and Grogu, potentially hurting its overall performance and success. After all, this kind of scenario has been seen before.

Star Wars Movies Have Been Hit By Avengers Films Before

Solo and Avengers: Infinity War

Admittedly, 2018’s Solo: A Star Wars Story failed for several reasons. Behind-the-scenes drama with reshoots and a new director, the residual fallout from 2017’s divisive The Last Jedi, and weak marketing all contributed to Solo‘s underperformance at the box office. However, another key reason was the overcrowded release schedule with Solo releasing on May 10, with Avengers: Infinity War having released just two weeks earlier (Fox’s ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool 2 releasing the week after didn’t help either).

Solo was certainly hit by its proximity to the major blockbuster that was Infinity War. Not only was the third Avengers movie a major powerhouse as the beginning of the end for the Infinity Saga, but Disney justifiably made it a bigger priority in terms of marketing. As such, one could imagine the exact same risk could have happened with Avengers: Doomsday and The Mandalorian and Grogu.

It Looks Like May Is Now Star Wars Month

May The Fourth Be With You!

Additionally, Shawn Levy and Ryan Gosling’s Star Wars: Starfighter no longer has to worry about Avengers: Secret Wars in May of 2027, which has also been moved to a December date. It looks as though Star Wars and the MCU have effectively swapped their traditional release windows, which does make a fair amount of sense. After all, May the Fourth celebrations do mean May is when engagement with the franchise is at its yearly peak. Having a Star Wars theatrical release in the same month makes all kinds of sense, as does moving any Marvel compeтιтion out of its path (for both franchises’ sake).

The Mandalorian & Grogu is set to release on May 22nd, 2026.