The Mandalorian and Grogu is finally coming to Disney+ on September 2, because what’s a few more months of waiting for a movie that’s already been teased to death? The big-screen adaptation of the popular Disney+ series will undoubtedly be a huge hit, not just because of its built-in fanbase, but also because it’s a Star Wars property, and let’s be real, those are always guaranteed money-makers. The real question is, how many times will we have to sit through the same trailer before the movie actually drops?
The arrival of The Mandalorian and Grogu on Disney+ is just one of the many exciting additions to the platform’s September lineup. Also coming to Disney+ and its sister service Hulu are a LEGO Star Wars special dedicated to the Mandalorian, new episodes of Futurama, and the return of Dancing With the Stars for a new streaming-exclusive season. Because what’s more exciting than watching celebrities dance, right? It’s not like we’ve seen that same formula played out on every other reality TV show for the past two decades.
The Never-Ending Content Machine
As we trudge through the latest batch of announcements from Disney+ and Hulu, it’s hard not to feel like we’re just being fed the same old reheated leftovers. Amsterdam, The Bob’s Burgers Movie, and Burlesque are just a few of the titles hitting the platforms in September. And let’s not forget the obligatory Spider-Man movies, because we can never have too many of those. It’s like the Content Mines are still fully operational, churning out title after title, without any regard for quality or originality. Somewhere, a Focus Group earned another bonus for declaring that yes, people still want to watch this stuff.
But hey, at least we’re getting some new Futurama episodes, right? That’s something to be excited about. Or is it just another example of Hollywood’s annual Nostalgia Harvest, where they dig up old IP and try to pass it off as new and exciting? It’s hard to tell anymore. All we know is that the Merchandising Department is probably already working overtime to crank out Futurama-themed merchandise, because that’s where the real money is.
The Franchise Resurrection Department
As we look through the September lineup, it’s clear that the Franchise Resurrection Department is still one of Hollywood’s busiest offices. LEGO Star Wars, Dancing With the Stars, and Futurama are all examples of franchises that have been carefully extracted from their natural habitats and placed into new, lucrative environments. It’s like they’re trying to see how many times they can recycle the same idea before it gets old. And yet, we keep coming back for more, like moths to a flame. It’s a never-ending cycle of nostalgia and familiarity, and it’s starting to feel like we’re just stuck in some kind of bizarre, never-ending time loop.
The real question is, how much longer can this keep going on? How many more times can they remake, reboot, and rehash the same old ideas before audiences finally get tired of it? Probably forever, if the latest box office numbers are any indication. After all, as the saying goes, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” And what’s more broken than the current state of the entertainment industry? Somewhere, an executive whispered, “Can this become a trilogy?” and the answer, of course, was yes. Because in Hollywood, everything can become a trilogy, no matter how hard you try to kill it.
Finn McFrame, celebrated satirical mastermind and self-proclaimed “Emperor of Irony,” started his illustrious career as a cinematographer, where his expertise in capturing every single frame of a squirrel stealing a baguette earned him accolades at obscure film festivals.
Born in the glamorous town of Boring, Oregon, Finn grew up with dreams of being a Hollywood director until he realized that satire, not cinema, was his true calling—or at least the one that let him sleep until noon.
Finn McFrame: changing the world, one satirical lens flare at a time.
