Fans view a familiar galaxy in Beijing

"How many fingers does Grogu have?" the host asked. A hand instantly shot up. "Three," a fan replied, without hesitation.

It was a small, telling moment at a special IMAX preview of Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu, where devotion to the Star Wars universe revealed itself not in spectacle, but in reflex.

The event took place on May 4 in downtown Beijing, a date known among fans as Star Wars Day. The preview offered a roughly 30-minute peek of the upcoming film, which is set for release on the Chinese mainland and North America on May 22.

May 4 began as a linguistic play that evolved into a global ritual, as it is homophonic to the franchise's most iconic line, "May the Force be with you". The phrase is believed to have originated from a newspaper headline that partly read "May the Fourth be with you", congratulating Margaret Thatcher on her election as the United Kingdom's prime minister on May 4, 1979.

Inside the theater, the mood built toward a climax as audience members recited the line in unison. Some even raised their beloved Star Wars merchandise, including Grogu plushies, the Force-sensitive alien who resembles a baby Yoda, adding to the sense of shared fandom.

Directed by Jon Favreau, the film follows legendary Mandalorian bounty hunter Din Djarin and his young apprentice Grogu as they navigate the post-Empire galaxy, taking on missions tied to the New Republic's pursuit of imperial remnants. The characters, first introduced in The Mandalorian, have become one of the franchise's most commercially and culturally resonant pairings in recent years.

The preview footage emphasized scale and clarity. Shot under the "Filmed for IMAX" program, the production includes nearly an hour presented in an expanded aspect ratio, allowing scenes, from wide snowy mountain expanses to tightly choreographed action, to fill the viewer's field of vision.

Yet, for many in attendance, the technology seemed secondary to something simpler: the chance to return, however briefly, to a familiar galaxy — and to share it with strangers.