'Mandalorian' Fans Speculate on 'Rebels' Live-Action Fate After Zeb Cameo

The Mandalorian co-creator Dave Filoni has a long history with the Star Wars franchise, and characters he helped create in the past have often found their way to the live-action series.

One such series that has been referenced in the Disney+ flagship show is Star Wars Rebels, which aired from 2014 to 2018 and was co-created by Filoni, Simon Kinberg and Carrie Beck.

And the latest episode of The Mandalorian saw the welcome return of one of the animated series' fan favorites: Garazeb "Zeb" Orrelios.

'Mandalorian' Fans Speculate on 'Rebels' Live-Action Fate After Zeb Cameo

Zeb, who was once again voiced by Steve Blum, appeared in a brief scene near the beginning of the episode, in which he spoke with Captain Carson Teva (Paul Sun-Hyung Lee).

The Lasat appears to have joined the New Republic following his days as a rebel fighter, and he bids Teva "good luck" when the X-Wing captain decides to travel to help in Nevarro when High Magistrate Greef Karga (Carl Weathers) says they are being besieged by pirates.

Fans of Rebels instantly recognized the character and their took to social media to share their delight at his live-action appearance. They also began speculating over the possibility of a live-action series featuring Rebels characters set after the events of the original show.

So far, it has been confirmed that Rebels character Ezra Bridger will appear in the future Ahsoka series, with Eman Esfandi portraying the character in live action.

The Mandalorian also featured a brief glimpse at purrgil hyperspace whales in the show's first episode. These creatures were also featured in Rebels. Ezra, who is also a force user, was able to bond with a pod of purrgil before he disappeared through a portal when fighting Admiral Thrawn in the animated series' finale.

Fans were ecstatic about how all this could pave the way for a future Rebels follow-up, which could also include characters like the Mandalorian Sabine.

One person said in response to the cameo: "Ok so now we know what #Zeb is doing in #Mandalorian The next question is where is Kallus?? Is he a Ranger?? Is he still on Lira San?? I need answers!!"

Another viewer wrote: "Let's gooooooo, Zeb! Hopefully we get the whole crew from The Rebels in future Mandalorian and Ahsoka episode."

One viewer referenced the hyperspace whales when they wrote: "FIRST PURRGIL'S, AND NOW ZEB! GIVE ME MOREEEEE!"

There was one viewer who shared their concerns over Sabine not yet appearing in The Mandalorian, as they felt it meant the character could be an important part of the story moving forward.

They wrote: "So now I'm really scared for what they have jn store because how did ZEB make it into the Mandalorian before SABINE who is THE LITERAL MANDALORIAN they've gotta be building up to something big"

One viewer, meanwhile, shared how they couldn't wait for the Ahsoka series which would feature more Rebels characters: "Excuse me while I cry cause now my second favourite Star Wars character is in Mando too! I love Zeb so much, so excited to see more in Ahsoka."

The Mandalorian has been the platform for several animated-series characters to appear in live action. Ahsoka was first created for Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels, for example. Rosario Dawson plays the character in live-action series. Ahsoka was voiced by Ashley Eckstein in animation.

Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) similarly appeared in both The Clone Wars and Rebels before joining The Mandalorian. Sackhoff voiced the character and plays her in the live-action show.

Cad Bane is another character who originally appeared in an animated series and later debuted in live action, though the bounty hunter appeared in The Book of Boba Fett rather than The Mandalorian.

The Mandalorian airs Wednesdays on Disney+.