When creating The Mandalorian for Disney+, Jon Favreau didn’t want Baby Yoda to be too cute – here’s how he made it happen. When The Mandalorian originally premiered, viewers were taken by surprise when, at the very end of the first episode, it was revealed that the titular Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) had been searching for a baby that looked just like the iconic green Jedi Master. Details regarding Yoda’s species have largely been kept a secret, even as Star Wars canon expands and goes deeper than ever before. Because of that, Baby Yoda’s presence in The Mandalorian was kept hush-hush until that first episode debuted. However, that didn’t stop him from becoming an internet sensation.
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In the months since The Mandalorian’s release, Baby Yoda (officially known as The Child in canon) has been the subject of countless pieces of fan art, a plethora of new toys, and even a selfie or two. Much of The Mandalorian’s first season focused on Pascal’s Din Djarin determining the best way to protect the powerful little tyke from the various people that want to get their hands on him. The second season will see Din looking for a new home for Baby Yoda, though he’ll likely receive some resistance from the mysterious Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito), who finally appeared at the end of the first season.
While Baby Yoda is arguably very cute, Favreau worked to keep him from getting too cute. In talking to Vanity Fair, Favreau revealed a lot of early designs for Baby Yoda kept giving him “Disney proportions,” or cuddly features and round eyes. Favreau didn’t want that for Baby Yoda, explaining, “Even with the merchandising, they were always trying to soften the rough edges on him. We really tried to look at how much we could ugly up all the different individual features.” This was why Favreau and Dave Filoni, who also worked on the show, gave Baby Yoda “weird little hairs growing out of him.” and jagged, sharp teeth.
The mission to keep Baby Yoda from being too cute translated to the noises he made. For example, instead of using classic baby cooing sounds, Favreau’s team used “creature noises.” As Favreau explained, “It’s like a stray dog or having a little baby alligator or something.” Still, even with all these adjustments to his appearance and vocal chords, fans still fell head over heels in love with Baby Yoda. Audiences appreciate him for his little quirks, like his ability to swallow a frog whole. It does make one wonder though what those original designs looked like.
Baby Yoda’s adventures will continue into the second season of The Mandalorian, and hopefully even into the already-in-development third. There are still a lot of mysteries to uncover regarding Baby Yoda, such as why are so many people after him? Expect more answers when the show returns later this year.
The Mandalorian season 2 premieres on Disney+ this October.
Source: Vanity Fair
