The Mandalorian helped bring back live-action Star Wars to the masses. Its release with the launch of Disney+ in November 2019 brought back a lot of fans who had been turned away due to their disappointment with the sequel trilogy and Solo: A Star Wars Story. It served as an oasis in the desert for these fans.
While telling the story of Din Djarin, a Mandalorian bounty hunter, it has featured several cameos from characters originally introduced in other Star Wars properties. Some have been nice homages to previous Star Wars works while others have had a greater effect on the overall plot of The Mandalorian.
9 Kelleran Beq
Kelleran Beq is a Jedi first introduced in Star Wars: Jedi Temple Challenge on YouTube. He appears in episode three of season three of The Mandalorian as a Jedi Master who helps Grogu escape the Jedi Temple during the execution of Order 66.
Overall, he has a minimal cameo, but the nice part of his appearance is Beq is played by Ahmed Best who famously played Jar Jar Binks in the prequel trilogy. Best took an unnecessary amount of criticism for the role, well beyond what is appropriate for expressing distaste. His appearance is a nice gesture for an actor who still loves Star Wars even when some fans didn't love him back.
8 Zeb Orrelios
Zeb was introduced in Star Wars: Rebels as one member of the group of misfits flying on the Ghost. Along with Hera, Kanan, Sabine, Ezra, and Chopper, Zeb eventually became an important part of the fledgling rebellion, helping it galvanize to the point it was at by A New Hope.
Zeb makes his live-action debut in episode five of season three of The Mandalorian. He advises Carson Teva who has just received a message from Nevarro about a pirate attack. With a show starring Ahsoka Tano already announced, could Zeb return to live-action Star Wars?
7 Bib Fortuna
Jabba's former right-hand Twi'lek appears in the final scene of season two of The Mandalorian. He survived Luke Skywalker's attack and is now sitting on Jabba's throne. However, that comes crashing down when Boba Fett and Fennec Shand arrive to take over.
His appearance is used to set up The Book of Boba Fett series. Given what happened in the scene, it's unlikely he will appear in future projects.
6 R5-D4
The red astromech droid whose blown motivator helped launch this science fiction series makes his return. Mando needed a droid to search Mandalore, and Peli Motto happened to have R5-D4 around.
R5-D4 helps Din Djarin find the living waters of Mandalore, and he helps Carson Teva find Din Djarin to warn him about the pirate attack on Nevarro. The only question that needs to be answered is, did R5-D4 sabotage himself so R2-D2 can join C-3PO at the Lars homestead?
5 R2-D2
The astromech droid, along with his counterpart C-3PO, was the heart and soul of the original trilogy. They also had major roles in the prequel trilogy. While his skills in the prequel trilogy being more powerful than in the original trilogy caused some problems, R2-D2 remained popular with fans.
He appeared in episode eight of season two. The astromech was on board an X-Wing firefighter that arrived to help the Mandalorian, Bo-Katan, and Grogu during their battle with Moff Gideon.
4 Luke Skywalker
The farm boy who started the entire Star Wars adventure made his return in episode eight of season two of The Mandalorian. Luke Skywalker arrives at Moff Gideon's ship on his X-Wing with R2-D2 to help rescue Din Djarin, Bo-Katan, and Grogu.
It's one of the few instances where Luke shows how great of a Jedi Knight he became in an onscreen role. He was just coming into his own in Return of the Jedi and was completely disillusioned by the events of the sequel trilogy.
3 Ahsoka Tano
Anakin Skywalker's former apprentice shows up to help guide the Mandalorian and Baby Yoda to Luke Skywalker. First introduced in The Clone Wars movie, Ahsoka Tano's training under Anakin is a vital part of The Clone Wars tv series. She appears again in Rebels helping the crew of the Ghost in their battles with the Empire and is helping Sabine on her mission to find Ezra after he disappeared in the series finale.
Ahsoka makes her first live-action appearance in episode five of season two. She is trying to learn the whereabouts of Grand Admiral Thrawn when Din Djarin finds her. She helps him understand that Luke will train Grogu in the ways of the Jedi. She also appears in The Book of Boba Fett.
2 Bo-Katan Kryze
Bo-Katan has appeared in several Star Wars projects. She was a vital part of the Mandalorian story in The Clone Wars and also appeared as part of the dark saber storyline in Rebels, before making her lie action debut in season two of The Mandalorian.
She helps Din Djarin during his battles with Moff Gideon but is also ready to come to blows with him as he has command of the dark saber. Bo-Katan becomes a series regular during season three as the focus shifts to the Mandalorians as a whole rather than just one representative.
1 Boba Fett
Has anyone appeared in more Star Wars properties and been played by as many actors as Boba Fett? First introduced in the Star Wars Holiday Special, Boba Fett is animated in that appearance that George Lucas wishes would be forgotten. He appeared in the original trilogy as a bounty hunter, Attack of the Clones as the cloned son of a bounty hunter, and The Clone Wars.
Boba Fett makes his first official appearance in season two of The Mandalorian after Din Djarin takes Boba's armor from Cobb Vanth. The pair then work together throughout the events of season two, setting up Mando's assistance in The Book of Boba Fett.