Is Moff Gideon a saviour? Giancarlo Esposito's surprise take on The Mandalorian villain

Esposito re-entered The Mandalorian with an especially dark presence; one which wants to tap The Child AKA Baby Yoda's blood for his "m-count", but the 62-year-old Breaking Bad actor says he believes (hopes?) that it's actually for more altruistic reasons than it appears.

While EW theorised that Moff wanted the blood to help create undefeatable super soldiers, Esposito replied that they were all trying to figure out what he wanted.

"Somewhere in my brain, I hold out something and he has some kind of ethical consideration here," he said. "When people flow out of control and there are all these different Moffs who've been assigned different areas to be wardens of, isn't there one person or someone that may have guidance over all of them? They're questions that are answered. It could be super soldiers. It could be that he wants to save the galaxy."

Esposito also alluded to Moff's innate and universal knowledge. "Why does Moff Gideon know everything about what's going on everywhere? He has some kind of incredible intelligence source. So I always hold out that there may be an altruistic reason that he is taking control or trying to. Certainly, The Child represents the possibility of a new humanity, of a new consciousness."

In order to make him a well-rounded human being, Esposito explained that he had to find some consciousness within Moff that made him wonder if he really did want to help people.

"It could be doubtful, but it could be true as well," he said. "He's playing a long game and I think that's why you see me interspersed in this season the way I am."

Moff Gideon is welcome back in The Mandalorian – finally – but Esposito suggested he won't really be a big hitter until season three.

"More than likely you're going to see a lot of Moff Gideon," he said. "I can't be sure of that, but it seems as though this iconic journey that they want you to feel it. I think you're going to start to see other storylines start to creep in. When we start to realise there's such a deep connection [between the show's storylines and] the rest of the galaxy and what's really happening. Maybe you'll get an inkling of what he wants."

The Mandalorian season two is streaming on Disney+. New episodes are released on Fridays. Check out what else is available on the service with our best movies on Disney Plus and best shows on Disney Plus guides, or visit our TV Guide to find out what’s on tonight.