Never fear, the Baby Yoda merch is here. Or at least it will be soon now that Disney has declared the adorable little Force-user is no longer a spoiler. That Jon Favreau and Co. were able to keep him secret through to The Mandalorian's first episode is extraordinary, especially when you consider most spoilers happen now because of early toy and merchandise previews.
Turns out, Favreau had to pull some serious strings with Disney to keep Baby Yoda hidden from the public, and that meant convincing them not to produce any toys or merchandise that would give it away. And this is the holiday season when that shit would sell like beskar steel to a Mandalorian. Favreau tells ET...
“I have to thank Disney and Lucasfilm because the way the cat usually gets out of the bag with that stuff is merchandising and toy catalogs and things like that. So they really backed us up because we really wanted to have it be that you had to watch it yourself, so that every time you watch the show, there are new twists and secrets that come out.”
He continued, “But that requires a lot of restraint from the people who are footing the bill, saying they’re gonna hold back on certain things so that the public doesn’t know ahead of time. Part of that was holding back on some of the merchandise and holding back on some of the characters.”
It used to be that if you wanted the hottest, most exclusive toy you had to actually accomplish things like collect cereal box labels or send in the UPC code from a certain number of GI Joe figures. I had to work my ass off to get that special edition William "Refrigerator" Perry action figure from Hasbro. Favreau remembers that shit, too, and is happy to put the current generation through just a small taste of that waiting game...
“Now you know what my generation went through because they didn’t have ‘Star Wars’ toys that first Christmas. I got a voucher for Christmas ‘77. There were commercials and I traded in the coupon and got them redeemed. So, that’s what it was like when I was a kid.”
Now that the secret is out you're starting to see Baby Yoda apparel around on the Internet, and other merchandise will be made available soon, some as early as today. CNBC reports...
Apparel and accessories featuring the yet unnamed creature will soon be available through Amazon, Zazzle, Target, Kohl’s, Macy’s, Hot Topic and Box Lunch, a person familiar with the company plans said. These items could arrive as early as Friday.
Other products will also arrive at the Disney Store, ShopDisney and at the Disney Parks before the holidays. In addition, presales for toys and plush will be available in the coming weeks. It is uncertain when that merchandise will be shipped.
Just let me know when the Funko shop gets Baby Yoda on pre-order. He's gotta come with his little egg carrier, too, right? Followed by a Mando/Baby Yoda combo, and if we're all lucky a Werner Herzog/Baby Yoda exclusive Chase.
