When Disney launched its premier streaming service, then it didn’t have much new content to offer. There was no WandaVision and no big never before seen Star Wars movie. But there was one content that the fledgling streaming service offered. And that was The Mandalorian.
Launched in 2019, The Mandalorian was a unanimous success. It was loved by hardcore Star Wars fans and even casual viewers alike. This was just the thing that Lucasfilm needed after the divisive Sequel Trilogy. The Disney+ series did a great job at introducing new characters like Greef Karga, Din Djarin, and Grogu.
Apart from introducing new characters, the show also did a great job of bringing previously animated characters like Ahsoka and Bo-Katan Kryze into live-action. Not to mention the fact that the show had Boba Fett and Luke Skywalker glorious returns that were applauded by fans.
Overall, fans and critics both appreciated the way The Mandalorian was able to juggle such a wide variety of characters while also simultaneously improving the overall Star Wars timeline. Now, The Mandalorian seasons 1 and 2 take place in the year 9 ABY i.e, After the Battle of Yavin.
So in the original Star Wars Trilogy, the timeline goes from 0 ABY in Star Wars: A New Hope to 4 ABY in Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. So only 5 short years have passed between the defeat of the Empire and Din Djarin seeing Baby Yoda for the first time.
So most of The Mandalorian’s major characters were active and alive during the original trilogy. Based on all the information we have regarding their birth year and current ages, here’s how old they would be between the events of A New Hope and Return of the Jedi.
Din Djarin
We still don’t know the exact canonical age of Pedro Pascal’s Din Djarin. But from the season 1 The Mandalorian flashbacks it can be clearly determined that Mando was indeed a very young child during the Clone Wars.
Now, the Clone Wars ended during 19 BBY (Before the Battle of Yavin), so this means that Mando was born during 30 BBY. As such, he would have been about 30 years old when Luke Skywalker was first discovering the Force during Tatooine.
As such, he would be 34 years old during the events of Return of the Jedi and about 39 or 40 during The Mandalorian. This estimate is basically based on Aidan Bertola’s age who played young Din Djarin during the Clone Wars flashbacks.
Greef Karga
It’s hard to estimate Greef Karga’s birth year since The Mandalorian gave no hints or information regarding it. The best possible assumption would be to use Carl Weathers’ date of birth as an approximate guideline.
Know that the actor who portrayed Greef Karga was 70 years old when the show premiered in 2019. So if we take that as our baseline, then the character would have been about 60 to 61 years old when Episode IV started. So he would have celebrated the fall of the Empire at 65.
The Mandalorian hints that Greef Karga was already involved in bounty hunting during this period.
Grogu
Thankfully, we don’t have to estimate Grogu’s age. It’s stated in The Mandalorian that he is 50-years-old. So when the original Star Wars Trilogy began, Baby Yoda would have been 41-years-old and 45 when it all ended.
However, Grogu probably didn’t want to celebrate any of the birthdays after going away from the Jedi temple in 32 BBY.
Bo-Katan Kryze
When Bo-Katan first appeared in The Clone Wars she was already grown up and a Death Watch fighter. Her debut episode is set in 20 BBY, and during that time she is about 18 to 22-years-old.
So going by this timeline, she would be about 40 during A New Hope. Now, viewers should remember that A New Hope happens after her final appearance in the animated Star Wars Rebels series.
After this, Bo-Katan would be 44 during Return of the Jedi and 49 during 2019’s The Mandalorian show. This might seem a little odd on-screen since Katee Sackhoff Bo-Katan’s actress is only in her early-40s.
However, do remember that this is just an estimation, and maybe season 3 of The Mandalorian will clarify Bo-Katan’s age fully.
Cara Dune
Cara was raised on Alderaan, but she was fortunate enough to not be there when Grand Moff Tarkin destroyed it. During the original Star Wars Trilogy, Cara Dune spent the majority of her time training to be a Rebel Alliance shock trooper.
So using the same guidelines as we did to approximate Greef Karga’s age, Cara Dune would be 36 during The Mandalorian. So this means that she was around 27-years-old when her planet got obliterated. And she was fighting for the Rebel Alliance when she was 31 years old.
Ahsoka Tano
As per the Star Wars Fact File collection, Ahsoka was born in the year 36 BBY, and she was made a part of the Jedi Order by Plo Koon only 3 years later.
Right now, we don’t know where she was during the Original Trilogy, but she would have been 36 years old when the Civil War started. As such, she would have been 40 when it finally ended.
Thus, as per the timeline, she would be 45 during the events of The Mandalorian. However, we also need to keep in mind that she spent an unknown amount of time in the World Between Worlds.
Now, one of the main traits of this mysterious place is that aging doesn’t happen in the usual way. This would mean that Ahsoka is either younger or older than what she should have been during the Original Trilogy and The Mandalorian.
Boba Fett
The Star Wars: Absolutely Everything You Need To Know Updated & Expanded canon reference book mentions that Boba Fett was 10 years old when he was programmed. This happened during the Battle of Geonosis in 22 BBY.
When we see Boba Fett in The Empire Strikes Back set in 3 ABY, then he’s 35-years-old. After that, he ‘dies’ in Return of the Jedi when he’s 36, and then in The Mandalorian, he’s 41.
Now, this might be hard to believe after looking at Temuera Morrison onscreen, who is about 20 years older than his character’s age in the series. Morrison’s age is especially jarring since Katee Sackhoff’s Bo-Katan is actually supposed to be the older character out of the both of them.
However, Boba Fett’s appearance issues can be explained away as a result of Kamino’s cloning technology or the aftereffects of getting swallowed up by Sarlacc.
Moff Gideon
Moff Gideon was originally part of the Empire’s ISB division. There he played a major role in the battle with Mandalore. But before that, his history isn’t widely known. The best way to estimate Moff Gideon’s age is by using Giancarlo Esposito’s date of birth as an approximate guideline.
It’s well-known that Gideon’s actor was 60 years old when his debut episode in Star Wars aired. So Moff Gideon was about 51-years-old during the events of A New Hope. This makes sense given just far he had risen up in the Imperial ranks.
Fennec Shand
There are a lot of characters on this list whose exact age and date of birth aren’t well-known. Fennec Shand is also one of them. Generally, we would use Ming-Na Wen’s real-life age to find out Fennec’s approximate age. But the character’s appearances throughout Star Wars history won’t allow us to reach an accurate result.
For example, Ming-Na Wen’s real-life age would indicate that Shand is 29-years-old in Star Wars: The Bad Batch. But the bounty hunter looks younger, and moreover she is even described as a hunter who is just beginning her career.
This means that Shand is most probably just in her early-20s here. The Bad Batch is set during 19 BBY, so Fennec Shand seems to be around 40 years old in the Original Trilogy.
As such, she would be 49 during The Mandalorian. Even though Ming-Na Wen is just in her mid-50s, she can easily get away with playing a younger assassin.
Luke Skywalker
Luke Skywalker’s age is easy to determine because he is the protagonist of the Original Star Wars Trilogy. He was born during Revenge of the Sith and was 19 when he annihilated the Death Star. The Jedi Master was 23 when he tried to convince Darth Vader to come back to the light.
Now, the de-aging effects do end up muddying things a little, but as per the timeline Luke is ideally supposed to be 28 when he rescues Grogu and takes him from training in his Jedi academy.
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