For as much as people yearn to seePedro Pascal’s face inThe Mandalorian, the brilliant minds behind theStar WarsTV show tread around it carefully - most pointedly Pascal himself. He’s admitted in the past that he asked for a helmet-less scene inThe Mandalorianseason 2 to be removed, and he got his wish. Now, he’s elaborating upon it further, as well as the motivation behind it.
Speaking toVanity Fairafter watching Din Djarin and Grogu’s goodbye scene inThe Mandalorianseason 2 finale, Pascal discussed the collaborative process withThe Mandaloriancreator Jon Favreau, particularly in terms of Din’s meaningful, helmet-less moments. Pascal stated thatin the season’s penultimate episode, “Chapter 15: The Believer,” there was yet another helmet-less scene initially planned- but Pascal opted to cut it.
Pedro Pascal: Jon Favreau is so collaborative that I remember having a conversation and there was an episode… it was before [The Mandalorian season 2 finale]. And maybe he had already had this planned already, but I remember talking to Jon and saying, ‘If there was a moment where I took off the helmet, I think we should really hold off, and it should be because the Child needs to see my face, breaking the Creed completely just because I want to introduce my soul to Grogu.’
Pascal’s reasoning was sound:he wanted the emotional impact of a helmet-less scene to emphasize his relationship with Grogu, and the love they share as father and son. While Pascal had a different idea about when this should take place, he ultimately agreed with the direction Favreau went in for their goodbye scene, though he still insisted that “I really felt heard, and it was really special for it to become the moment that it became.”
Pedro Pascal: My idea was in a different spot, and then Jon ended up making it a much, much, much better part of the series, but I really felt heard, and it was really special for it to become the moment that it became, because it was somewhat of a collaborative thing.
What This Deleted Scene Means For The Mandalorian
They Take Helmet-Less Moments Very Seriously
While we, as the audience, have long since been vocally hungry for another Din Djarin helmet-less scene - given the fact this goodbye scene was nearly five years ago now - Pascal, Favreau, and the rest ofThe Mandalorianteam know what they’re doing. These kinds of momentscarry a weight and are precious, and ought not to be tossed injust to please the audience.
Deleting a scene like this, especially after Pascal himself advocated for its removal, shows just how much thought truly goes intoDin Djarin’s characterand his story.The Mandalorianseason 3’s decisions where Din was concerned may not have been the most favorable in viewer’s eyes, but in this case,they made the right call. It worked perfectly for Din and Grogu’s goodbye.
Everything We Know About The Mandalorian Season 2’s Deleted Scene
And Why It Was The Right Call To Delete It
Of course, we can’t help the fact that we long to know what the full nature of this deleted helmet-less scene was. Thankfully, Pascal has already provided some context. During an interview withVarietyin 2023, Pascal discussed this deleted scene in “The Believer” for the first time, describing howhe was in “a different kind of costume” - no doubt the Imperial armor he usesto disguise himself.
I personally imagine that we were originally going to have a private moment with Din when he’s exchanging his Mandalorian helmet for this Imperial helmet, prior to the helmet-less scene that takes place later inside Morak’s Imperial refinery. While it certainly would have had an impact,it would not have had nearly the same impact as what we have now- and could have risked cheapening those later helmet removals.
Pascal’s words in this discussion withVanity Fair, however, raise another interesting question: when did Pascal imagine Din taking his helmet off for Grogu? Again, if I had to guess, I would say it might have beenwhen he was initially reunited with Grogu after boarding Moff Gideon’s light cruiser. It also could have been earlier on inThe Mandalorianseason 2, perhaps when he thought he was saying goodbye to Grogu on Corvus; for now, it’s nothing more than a mystery.
