Pedro Pascal may be the face and voice of Din Djarin, but there are actually three actors who play the titular role in The Mandalorian. Set in a post-Return of the Jedi world, the Disney+ series follows a lone bounty hunter who suddenly becomes a little less alone when he accidentally becomes the guardian of a creature called The Child (better known to fans as Baby Yoda).
While some actors have one stunt double to handle all their stunts, the role of the Mandalorian is split between three performers. Pascal is underneath the helmet during straightforward dialogue scenes and moments that don't require any stunts. When the guns come out, expert gunslinger Brendan Wayne takes over. And when the Mandalorian has to engage in any kind of hand-to-hand combat or risky stunts, Lateef Crowder dons the armor.
Episode 3 of the ongoing Disney+ series Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian focuses on the cast of the show, featuring round tables with the main cast members and showrunners Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau. The portion of the episode dedicated to Pascal not only goes into the challenges of filming and acting that are presented by a character who (almost) never removes his helmet, but also pays tribute to the other two actors who play the Mandalorian. "I am third fiddle to two incredible guys," Pascal explains. "I'm modelling my performance around their physicality."
The Mandalorian marks Brendan Wayne's first role as a stunt double. Wayne is the grandson of the legendary film actor John Wayne, who - along with other stars like Clint Eastwood and Gary Cooper - came to personify the lone gunslinger trope that the Mandalorian is based on. He has previously appeared in Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Sons of Anarchy, as well as Favreau's 2011 movie Cowboys and Aliens. Like his grandfather, Wayne is deft at handling firearms, which means that he takes over the armor whenever gunfighting is required. "I get to pull guns. I get to shoot guns. I get to shoot grappling hooks," Wayne summarizes in Disney Gallery, adding, "It's fun!"
Lateef Crowder is an experienced stunt coordinator and performer, having previously worked on movies like Wonder Woman, Captain America: Civil War, and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Crowder is particularly experienced in the Afro-Brazilian martial art capoeira, as well as other disciplines like jujutsu. Crowder takes over the role of the Mandalorian for scenes involving hand-to-hand combat and other big action stunts (like being blown away by explosions). "The secret is to always be ready," Crowder says in the docuseries. "I'm always training, whether it's martial arts, whether it's stunt training [or] weight training."
The Mandalorian creed that Din Djarin abides by means that he can't ever take his helmet off in front of another living thing, or allow it to be taken off. He unmasked only once in The Mandalorian season 1, so that IG-88 (who, being a droid, represented a loophole in the helmet rule) could heal his wounds. Perhaps we'll see Pascal's face again when the Mandalorian and the Child return in season 2.