A major star from The Book of Boba Fett – and the wider Mandalorian era – has confirmed whether they’ll make their big-screen Star Wars debut in next year’s The Mandalorian and Grogu. Seven years after Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker premiered, Lucasfilm is hedging its bets and using its most successful live-action TV streaming series to push the franchise back into cinemas. The result is The Mandalorian and Grogu, which will reunite viewers with Din Djarin and Grogu after the events of The Mandalorian season 3.

Of course, Din’s and Grogu’s story is inextricably intertwined with another Mandalorian-era show, The Book of Boba Fett, which saw Temuera Morrison’s Boba Fett and Ming-Na Wen’s Fennec Shand take over Jabba the Hutt’s palace and criminal empire on Tatooine. Speaking with ScreenRant‘s Liam Crowley at the Karate Kid: Legends NYC premiere, Ming-Na Wen confirmed whether bounty hunter Fennec Shand would return in the upcoming Star Wars film.

Liam Crowley: We all miss Fennec Shand. It’s been a minute since we’ve seen her. Mando and Grogu? Big screen next year, maybe?

Ming-Na Wen: Well, I mean I’m not in it, but if I can be that would be great.

Liam Crowley: Do you think we’ll see her again?

Ming-Na Wen: I hope we see Fennec again. Yes, because I miss her too.

It Seems The Mandalorian And Grogu Won’t Be Bringing Boba Fett & Fennec Shand Back

Won’t Din Djarin Need More Allies?

Unfortunately, it seems Fennec Shand – and, by extension, Boba Fett – will not be making a comeback in The Mandalorian and Grogu, despite Boba Fett’s miraculous return and Fennec Shand’s character debut occurring in The Mandalorian season 2. Of course, Wen didn’t confirm that Boba wouldn’t be included either, as she was only asked about her character, but as The Book of Boba Fett proved, where Boba goes, so too does Fennec.

As Star Wars has revealed very few details about The Mandalorian and Grogu, it’s hard to say how Fennec and Boba may have fit into the story, but we know that Din Djarin values them as allies. If, as The Mandalorian season 3’s ending suggests, The Mandalorian and Grogu will follow this beloved duo on the New Republic front lines against the Imperial Remnant and Grand Admiral Thrawn, they’ll need all the allies they can get. Why not call upon two old friends?

Is There A Future For Fennec Shand After The Book Of Boba Fett?

A Bounty Hunter Can Travel Anywhere In The Galaxy

Sadly, The Book of Boba Fett is regarded as one of Star Wars’ worst live-action TV shows. Din Djarin and Grogu’s story overshadowed Boba Fett’s, and the narrative didn’t truly fit what audiences expected from a legendary character like Boba Fett. The show had redeeming qualities, but the backlash against it may have made Star Wars cautious about where to include these characters next.

Though most audiences who intend to see The Mandalorian and Grogu in theaters will have undoubtedly watched The Mandalorian, that’s no guarantee that they’ll have watched The Book of Boba Fett as well. This is an issue Star Wars has run into before. Din Djarin and Grogu’s sudden reunion in Boba Fett was missed by viewers who skipped the spinoff and dove into The Mandalorian season 3 without knowing Din and Grogu had already been reunited, causing unnecessary confusion.

Bringing a TV show to the big screen is already a risk, especially one so intertwined with other related stories like The Book of Boba Fett and Ahsoka. If Star Wars has chosen to omit Fennec Shand and her boss to make it a little less complicated, that’s understandable, though it’s still a shame. How can Boba and Fennec’s characters grow without being included in the so-called “Mandoverse’s” biggest story?

If they return, we’ll likely see them in projects set before the New Republic era, like Fennec’s recurring role (voiced by Ming-Na Wen) in Star Wars: The Bad Batch, rather than anywhere else. These characters have so much potential, and Fennec, especially, deserves to have her backstory fleshed out more. It’s hard to say what the future holds for this character beyond The Book of Boba Fett if she’s not part of The Mandalorian and Grogu, though, as a bounty hunter, she could turn up anywhere.