Even though The Mandalorian season 3 aired over a year ago, questions such as "Who is Grogu?" (or, of course, "who is Baby Yoda?") remain. Season 3 did give us some flashbacks showing where Grogu came from before he met The Mandalorian, but the adorable sidekick is still relatively mysterious when it comes to his heritage and birth.
While Grogu's been able to charm his way into the heart of Din Djarin (The Mandalorian's real name), and get the masked bounty hunter to break the rules of his people, his backstory is still filled with more questions. Thankfully, we have learned a lot about Baby Yoda along the way, and here's to hoping we'll learn even more in future seasons or even a movie.
So, with no more further ado, let's go over what we know (and what's been happening to) Grogu (aka Baby Yoda).
Who is Grogu?
Whether you call him (and yes, Grogu is male) Grogu, Baby Yoda, The Child or Mando's best friend, Grogu is a Force-sensitive member of the same race as Yoda, the legendary Jedi Grand Master.
We first learned that Grogu is Force-sensitive when he saved Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) from a dangerous Mudhorn.
Show-runner Jon Favreau hinted at a grand scale of importance for the character: "As fun as it is to reveal new characters and surprise them, it also fits into a larger narrative about what’s going on in the galaxy after the revolution. This is an important character."
(From 2019) That quote is backed up by a sighting at the Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge attraction from Disney Land's Hollywood Studios park in Orlando. Newsweek found a Reddit post that suggests that The Mandalorian's armor will one day gain iconography related to The Child, which sounds like this season will revolve around a bounty hunter with a heart of Beskarian steel who decides to care about this baby Yoda. At one point in episode 3, The Mandalorian debates about the sigil that should go on his armor, and declines to take the original offer, which reflects this.
Now over a year after season 3 premiered, we know that Grogu has officially been adopted by Din. In the finale, Din wanted to raise Grogu from a foundling to an Apprentice on Mandalore. For that to happen, Grogu needed permission from a "parent", and so Din adopted Grogu as his own son (which was one of the most heart-warming moments ever).
How old is Grogu?
Grogu is 53 years old (as of 2024), having been born in 41 BBY (Before The Battle of Yavin). The Mandalorian is currently in 11 ABY (After The Battle of Yavin), as Jon Favreau said Luke and Baby Yoda spent two years together.
We get to 11 ABY and 53 years old because The Mandalorian was told the bounty he was looking for in the first episode was 50 years old, and that season was at 9 ABY.
At 50, Grogu has lived through Order 66 and the fall of the Jedi.
How do we know Baby Yoda's name is Grogu?
It took 13 episodes for The Mandalorian to reveal that the character we called Baby Yoda had a real name. We learned this when Djarin and Grogu met Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) in The Mandalorian Chapter 13: "The Jedi."
Tano, Force-sensitive herself, communicated with Grogu to learn his name.
What's Grogu's back story?
Tano also revealed that Grogu was originally raised at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, but had to go into hiding following the fall of the Jedi Order.
During Anakin Skywalker's rampage at the Jedi Temple when slaughtering young Jedi, Grogu was taken offworld and hidden away by Jedi Master Kelleran Beq. He then had to hide his Force abilities to survive since force users were being hunted.
Is Baby Yoda Yoda's child? Is Grogu related to Yoda?
All we know at this point is that Yoda and Grogu are a part of the same species. That said, we've only seen one other member of their species prior — Yaddle, a female who appeared in Episode I: The Phantom Menace and Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi.
That's why you wouldn't be judged for thinking Grogu and Yoda aren't closely related. That said, Yoda passed away at 900 years old, far older than Grogu is now. With what little we know about their species, it's hard to assume anything about how they're related.
What species is Baby Yoda?
Shockingly, we've never learned the name of Yoda's species. In Wookieepedia, Yoda's species is literally referred to as "Yoda's species."
Is Grogu a Jedi now?
At the end of The Mandalorian season 2, Din Djarin allowed Grogu to go off with Luke Skywalker, to pursue his training as a Jedi. That training, as seen in The Book of Boba Fett, took place on the planet of Ossus (where Skywalker's Jedi Academy is supposed to be).
Grogu wasn't the best pupil, once using his powers to find frogs to snack on. After Luke realized that Grogu's heart wasn't in the training, he offered him a choice. Grogu could either take the armor that Din Djarin had left for him, or continue training — but risk never reuniting with his Beskar steel-clad friend. So, Grogu's Jedi training has basically been paused.
Thankfully, Grogu chose the armor as seen when him and Mando reunite in episode 5 of "The Book of Boba Fett". Most viewers consider him a Jedi now after "The Mandalorian" season 3, although it hasn't been confirmed.
What's Grogu's status at the end of The Mandalorian season 3?
We know that Mando has officially adopted Grogu as his son at the end of season 3, with Mando now having gain the Armorer's approval to promote the child from foundling to apprentice (finally).
Nothing is known about "The Mandalorian" season 4 and whether there will be any details soon, but it will most likely continue the journey of these two fan-favorite characters. However, don't fret, because there is still talk of a "The Mandalorian & Grogu" movie happening. It was set to begin production this month (June 2024), but there haven't been any updates.
