If you were caught off guard seeing Martin Scorsese’s name in the opening credits of The Mandalorian and Grogu, you are not alone. The legendary director — famous for Goodfellas, Taxi Driver, and Killers of the Flower Moon — has made a surprising leap into the Star Wars universe, and his cameo is already one of the most talked-about moments of the film. Here is everything you need to know about who Martin Scorsese plays, how he got the role, and why it carries a delightful secret connection to Star Wars lore.
Martin Scorsese Plays Hugo Durant — An Alien Fry Cook
In The Mandalorian and Grogu, Martin Scorsese voices a character named Hugo Durant, a four-armed, fur-covered alien known as an Ardennian. Hugo operates a small food kiosk — essentially a Star Wars-style food truck — on the seedy moon of Shakari.
His character appears in the first 25 minutes of the film. When Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and Grogu arrive on Shakari searching for information about Rotta the Hutt (voiced by Jeremy Allen White), they approach Hugo’s kiosk looking for leads. Scorsese’s unmistakable New York drawl cuts right through the scene.
At first, Hugo seems willing to talk. He agrees after Mando slides a coin across the counter, promising: “For that price, I’ll tell you whatever you want.” But the moment Din mentions he is looking for a Hutt, Hugo slams the shutters down in a panic, yelling “Closed for the night! Thank you!” and retreating from view. It is a brief, electric scene — and Scorsese delivers it with the exact gruff energy you would expect from the man behind the camera on some of Hollywood’s greatest crime films.
The Secret Star Wars Connection Behind Hugo Durant
Here is where things get genuinely fun for dedicated Star Wars fans. While the name “Hugo Durant” is never spoken aloud in the film, the end credits confirm it — and that surname should ring a bell.
Hugo Durant is almost certainly a relative of Rio Durant, the four-armed Ardennian pilot introduced in Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018). Rio was the first member of this alien species to appear in live-action Star Wars, and he was voiced by none other than Jon Favreau — the creator of The Mandalorian and director of The Mandalorian and Grogu.
In other words, the director of the film and one of cinema’s most celebrated auteurs now share linked characters within official Star Wars canon. Two legendary filmmakers, two Ardennians, one galaxy. It is exactly the kind of layered, rewarding callback that Favreau and co-writer Dave Filoni love to weave into the Mandoverse.
How Did Martin Scorsese End Up in Star Wars?
For years, Martin Scorsese has been one of the most outspoken critics of franchise blockbusters. In 2019, he famously told Empire magazine that Marvel movies are “not cinema” and compared them to “theme parks.” His comments sparked a wide debate across Hollywood.
So how did he end up in a Star Wars film?
The answer is Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy. Kennedy, who is departing the role, personally called Scorsese with the offer. Jon Favreau confirmed to SFX magazine that Kennedy “knows him well” and “socializes with him,” describing her as “a gold-star producer” who made the casting call feel effortless.
Favreau also admitted that even though he knows Scorsese personally, he still gets starstruck around him. The irony of Scorsese — a man who once called franchise entertainment “theme parks” — now voicing an alien fry cook in the Star Wars universe was not lost on anyone, including the official Star Wars social media team. When they announced the casting on X (formerly Twitter), they captioned the clip with two words: “absolute cinema.” A pointed, playful nod to Scorsese’s own critical language.
Scorsese’s History of Voice Work
While playing a character in a sci-fi blockbuster might seem out of left field, Martin Scorsese is no stranger to lending his voice to films. He has appeared in small acting and voice roles throughout his career, including:
- Shark Tale (2004) — a vocal role in the animated DreamWorks film
- Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, The Last Temptation of Christ, The Wolf of Wall Street, and Killers of the Flower Moon — each features a brief vocal cameo from Scorsese himself
His voicework in The Mandalorian and Grogu follows that same tradition, though it marks his biggest role in someone else’s franchise film by far.
The Broader Cast and Context of The Mandalorian and Grogu
The Mandalorian and Grogu hit theaters on May 22, marking Star Wars’ first cinematic release since The Rise of Skywalker in 2019 — a gap of nearly seven years. The film serves as a continuation of the Disney+ series and replaces what would have been a fourth season on streaming.
Pedro Pascal returns as Din Djarin alongside Grogu, with a supporting cast that includes:
- Sigourney Weaver as Colonel Ward, a veteran New Republic pilot
- Jeremy Allen White as Rotta the Hutt, son of Jabba
- Jonny Coyne as a ruthless Imperial warlord
- Babu Frik and Zeb Orrelios also make appearances
The film opened to a projected domestic box office of $81–82 million over its opening weekend, on track to top the domestic charts over the Memorial Day holiday period.
Why Scorsese’s Cameo Works So Well
What makes the Hugo Durant role so satisfying is not just the shock value of seeing Scorsese in a Star Wars credit. It is the way the scene is written and performed. Hugo is brusque, nervous, and immediately self-interested — qualities that feel entirely at home in Scorsese’s world of slippery street-level characters. The fact that his character exists within the criminal underworld of the galaxy (the Hutt network, the seedy moons) only deepens the joke for cinephiles.
And then there is the Rio Durant connection — a piece of world-building that rewards fans paying close attention without distracting from the story for anyone who misses it. Favreau and Filoni have built the Mandoverse on exactly this kind of layered, affectionate detail, and Scorsese’s Hugo Durant fits perfectly into that tradition.
Have you spotted any other hidden Easter eggs in The Mandalorian and Grogu? Drop your theories in the comments below — we want to hear what you caught!