Jon Favreau confirms fan-favorite bounty hunter IG-88 will appear in the upcoming Star Wars TV show, The Mandalorian. Not much is known about Lucasfilm's first foray into live-action television, but a brief synopsis released earlier this year revealed it would be set in a relatively lawless corner of the galaxy between the events of Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. With the series following the adventures of a lone gunman (played by Pedro Pascal), it seemed obvious The Mandalorian would explore the galactic underworld in depth.

As is the case with any of the modern Star Wars projects, The Mandalorian is going to introduce plenty of new characters to the canon, but that hasn't stopped fans from wondering if any familiar faces will also be appearing. Just last week, reports indicated the show would feature multiple classic bounty hunters from The Empire Strikes Back, including IG-88 and Bossk. While the latter hasn't been confirmed yet, things have now been cleared up about the former's involvement.

Related: The Mandalorian May Include Sabine Wren From Rebels

Today, Favreau took to his Instagram account to post a Merry Christmas message to his followers, which included a behind-the-scenes photo of IG-88 in front of a green screen. You can check it out for yourself in the space below:

As most Star Wars fans know, IG-88 was one of many mercenaries hired by Darth Vader to track down the Millennium Falcon in Empire. The droid bounty hunter followed Boba Fett in his pursuit and almost ended up being permanently destroyed in an encounter. His remains can be seen in a Cloud City junk room (during the sequence where Chewbacca retrieves C-3PO's parts), but apparently IG-88 survived that ordeal. It'll be interesting to see how he factors into The Mandalorian, as his role could be anything from a background figure to a key supporting presence. Hopefully, Favreau and company were able to give IG-88 some cool things to do. The previous rumors indicated the droid would be getting in on the action by battling enemies and riding speeder bikes, so it sounds like the character will be fleshed out extensively on the show.

This is one of the benefits of Lucasfilm producing shows for the Disney Plus streaming service (see also: the Cassian Andor prequel show). They're able to dedicate time and resources to characters and storylines that can't necessarily be the primary focus of a feature film. At one point, a Boba Fett movie was seemingly on the table, and allegedly would have co-starred numerous other bounty hunters. But with Lucasfilm placing the standalone anthologies on hold in the wake of Solo's commercial disappointment, taking that concept (admittedly, a revised version of it) to the small screen seems smart. Ideally, The Mandalorian will be a success when it premieres in 2019 and give fans another great Star Wars story to be invested in.

More: The Mandalorian Can Fill A Force Awakens Gap And Show The Empire's Fall

Source: Jon Favreau