I think we can all agree that The Mandalorian has been firing on all cylinders since its debut in 2019 and with two successful seasons under its belt, all the pressure in the galaxy was definitely put on Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni to replicate or even surpass the show's marquee performance for its third season.
Major hype surrounded The Mandalorian ahead of its Season 3 debut and many were confident that it would still generate the same level of buzz as the first two seasons. Shockingly enough, that wasn't the case and according to a recent report, Season 3's first episode performed poorly compared to other Star Wars shows.
The Wrap recently shared data from Samba TV indicating that Season 3's explosive premiere wasn't able to sustain the momentum of the first two seasons. According to the said data, Chapter 17's viewership of just under 1.5 million failed to meet expectations. "The Apostate" came up short against other Star Wars shows like Obi-Wan Kenobi (2.14 million viewers) and the MandoVerse spinoff The Book of Boba Fett (1.5 million viewers).
For comparison, Season 2's premiere episode was viewed by 2.08 million households. It isn't all that bad for Din Djarin and crew as Season 3's premiere episode still surpassed Andor's viewership by close to 50%.
Also Read: The Mandalorian’s Longest Episode Yet Leaves Fans Fuming; Here’s Why
That's not to say though that the show's quality has declined because judging by the stuff we've seen so far, The Mandalorian still deserves its position as the Star Wars franchise's flagship program. Now, we don't know for sure what led to its first episode's underwhelming viewership but it's still a show worth watching.
The Mandalorian Season 3's first four episodes are now streaming on Disney+.
Explore new topics and discover content that's right for you!