Old School. Biblically Independent.
By Mike Redmond | News | February 10, 2026
Instead of promoting Avengers: Doomsday or Spider-Man: Brand New Day, a movie I’m told comes out this summer, Disney decided to put all its Super Bowl chips on The Mandalorian and Grogu, but in the weirdest way possible.
As a dime store Sam Elliott narration kicks in, the ad invokes the old Budweiser Clydesdale commercials of yore until Star Wars fans clock that we’re actually looking at Tauntauns trekking through the snow. Sure enough, our heroes are spotted in a space sled with all of the dramatic heft of watching paint dry. This thing has roughly the same amount of soul as an AI Coke video, which is zero. Possibly even negative soul.
As for why Disney would go this route, well, they’re openly banking on Baby Yoda still being a merchandising golden goose and not expired goods that Season 3 of The Mandalorian left rotting in the sun.
Via Variety:
“Grogu is more than a character; he’s a pop culture phenomenon. Riding alongside the heroic Mandalorian, he brings lightness, humor, joy, and an instant emotional connection that transcends the moment,” said Disney’s executive VP of creative marketing Jackson George. “This Big Game spot celebrates how deeply we love and connect with these characters, reminds us of the fun, heart, and spectacle that defines ‘Star Wars,’ and offers a bite-sized promise of the experience audiences will get when they see these two beloved icons on the big screen.”
Wow, neat, incredible stuff. Maybe I’m old fashioned, but if you’re going to make a beer commercial, you should probably have someone drink a beer. In this case, clearly Grogu. The show has established that he’s over 50 years old, so everyone calm down. Relax. We could have witnessed the birth of this generation’s Spuds MacKenzie, but with a freaking lightsaber. What happened to this country? We used to be giants at marketing beer. GIANTS. I blame the McCain family.
You can watch The Mandalorian and Grogu Super Bowl spot that should’ve had the little bugger smash an empty can on Mando’s helmet below:
