The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is a yearly tradition, showcasing performances, Broadway previews, balloons, floats, and the Radio City Rockettes. The last couple of years have had a new addition to the lineup: The Mandalorian‘s Grogu as one of the massive balloons. Will the adorable force-wielding toddler make his return in 2023?
Yes! Grogu, AKA Baby Yoda, is part of the 2023 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade lineup as one of the 25 balloons during the event. Chasing the metallic knob from the Razor Crest through the sky, Grogu will join other fun, gigantic balloons from other franchises like Pikachu and Eevee from Pokemon, Bluey, and newcomers like Po from Kung Fu Panda and Monkey D. Luffy from One Piece, according to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade website.
It’s crazy to think that in the history of both the annual event and one of the biggest franchises in the world that Grogu is the first Star Wars character to be showcased in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. His design is a collaboration with Funko, inspired by his Funko POP. Den of Geeks spoke with Funko Vice President of Creative Ben Butcher in 2019 about the balloon’s creations back when Grogu was still known as “Baby Yoda” and stated:
"“It’s obviously such an adorable character, and our partnership with Lucasfilm is incredible, and we love working with them so it just felt like a natural fit from the beginning.”"
Funko CEO Brian Mariotti added, “It saturated the entire population of Earth. Everybody was doing Baby Yoda memes and everything else. It was a real no brainer.”
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade website also offers some fun facts about Grogu’s balloon, sharing that it is 41 feet tall or as high as a 3-story building. It is also 29 feet long and 37 feet wide. The knob Grogu chases through the sky can fit 475,200 normal-sized knobs inside of it.
You can see Grogu on the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on November 23 at 8:30 AM Eastern Standard Time.