Star Wars: The Bad Batch Reportedly Delayed From Spring 2022 Release
Disney+'s Star Wars: The Bad Batch has reportedly been pushed back from its Spring 2022 release. The Clone Wars spin-off debuted with season 1 on May 4, 2021, and stars Dee Bradley Baker as the Bad Batch, an enhanced unit of unique clones, and Michelle Ang as Omega, an unaltered clone made from the pure DNA of bounty hunter Jango Fett. The Bad Batch season 2 has been confirmed for a 2022 release, but its exact premiere date is as of yet unknown.
The Bad Batch season 1 followed Clone Force 99 and their newest member Omega from Order 66 to the heartbreaking destruction of Kamino, the home of the clones. They were forced to find a new way in the galaxy as the war came to an end and the reign of the Galactic Empire began. The Bad Batch had to part ways with Crosshair amidst this journey due to the functionality of his inhibitor chip and differences in ideology, which left season 1 off on a melancholy yet hopeful note. Alongside the Bad Batch's story, season 1 explored the War-Mantle project that saw the clone troopers get replaced by stormtroopers as well as a hint to future cloning efforts as seen in The Mandalorian at the conclusion of the season. Viewers have been anticipating season 2 and how it will continue to explore how the clones dealt with the fall of the Republic.
Now, viewers will reportedly have to wait a little longer to see the Bad Batch again. A recent issue of Stars Wars Insider (via The Direct) has removed its Spring 2022 release window from The Bad Batch and has replaced it with a "Coming Soon" tag. While the show was never confirmed to be released for Spring 2022 outside of these magazines, they are official Star Wars material, which makes this quite the change for the show's anticipated release. Despite the disappointing update, The Bad Batch season 2 is still confirmed for 2022, which means it will still be "Coming Soon," just as the new tag indicates.
With the release of Obi-Wan Kenobi coming on May 25, this delay for The Bad Batch could simply indicate that the studio wants to prevent overlap between the two Star Wars series. This sets The Bad Batch up for a summer release, which would fit into the expected Star Wars release calendar for 2022. Andor will supposedly be released in the fall and The Mandalorian season 3 has also been predicted to release around Christmas time. This leaves The Bad Batch a window between the conclusion of Obi-Wan Kenobi and the beginning of Andor where overlap could be prevented. If delays for the series continues, however, it could make those overlaps unpreventable between various Star Wars media.
What viewers can likely rely on, however, is an interesting season 2 for the members of the Bad Batch. It's still unclear as to whether or not Crosshair was telling the truth about having his inhibitor chip removed despite what he told Hunter, since he looked to be having the signature headache during the season 1 finale. Additionally, The Bad Batch season 1 finale left a huge hint as to how the Empire's use of cloning technology may play a role in season 2 — and how that could tie characters like The Mandalorian's Grogu into the story. There's also plenty of room for other beloved characters to make an appearance, after season 1 featured guests such as Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen) and Captain Rex. Though the wait for Star Wars: The Bad Batch season 2 will now be longer than expected, viewers can only hope that it will be worth it.
Source: Star Wars Inside (via The Direct)