The Mandalorian and Grogu brings back Jonny Coyne's mysterious Imperial warlord from his brief appearance in the Shadow Council scene in The Mandalorian season 3.
That scene did not involve the titular duo, though, which means the movie is Coyne's first time appearing opposite Din Djarin and Din Grogu. Of course, the role of Mando is shared between Brendan Wayne, Lateef Crowder, and Pedro Pascal – Pascal provides Din Djarin's voice and face (on the rare occasions he is unmasked), while Crowder provides the stunts and action work, and Wayne provides the more every day performance in the suit.
We spoke to Coyne, whose character's name is Janu Coin, all about his role in the Star Wars film, and we asked who he worked with the most on set.
"Mostly Brendan," Coyne tells us. "You'd be surprised, you know, Brendan carries a lot of the stuff because he's the silhouette of the Mandalorian in so many ways: the way he walks, the way he behaves. So, he's very much a part of it all. Lateef comes in and kicks everybody around. He's incredible, actually, Lateef, and I did get a chance to see him in action a lot of the time. But, most of my work was with Brendan."
While Coyne didn't work with Pedro Pascal on set, he did eventually get to meet him. "He's a fantastic actor, and so lovely. I met him at the premiere, and he was very charming, and bloody handsome," he laughs.
It's not just the Beskar-clad warrior Coyne shares the screen with, though: he also works with Grogu.
"It's a complete individual. They do say don't work with animals and children, because you'll never get a look in as an actor, and it's true," he jokes. "You've got a beautiful alien child in front of you, and as cute as anything, and when he starts flapping his eyes, lids, and he's flipping his ears and things, it's adorable.
"But the guys who [are] his family, as it were, the people who run him, they're never offline," Coyne adds. "They're kind of off-set, off-screen. You pass by, you give little Grogu a little tickle, and he comes alive. They're on him all the time, they just work him all the time. It's quite amazing to watch, really."
In fact, the scene Coyne shares with both of them in his office on Shakari ended up being his favorite from the entire movie.
"I did like my central scene with Mando and Grogu," he tells us. "That was great fun to play, not least because I get to say all the words, that's always the actor's favorite part. No, it was great to be part of all that, and live on that set and live in that world for a little while."
It helps that Coyne was already a big Star Wars fan, even before his role in season 3. "I have seen every single one of them. I'd seen all the Mando series before I got the job. A friend of mine did actually say to me, 'You should be in The Mandalorian.' I said, 'Well, okay, fine, great, bring it on, but you're not a casting director.' But, I'd seen all the Star Wars movies. I was, I think, 18, 19, when the first one came out. It's very much been a part of my entire life, long before I thought of becoming an actor. And then, at this stage of my career, to get into one of these is brilliant."
The Mandalorian and Grogu is in theaters now. For more, check out our guide to all the upcoming Star Wars movies and shows, or our roundup of how to watch the Star Wars movies in order.
