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Dave Filoni explains how Rosario Dawson’s performance as Ahsoka Tano gave him the confidence to really dive into the Ahsoka series. Filoni has been a key architect of Ahsoka’s story since the beginning, through The Clone Wars animated movie and series into Rebels. In The Mandalorian, Ahsoka made her live-action debut, with Dawson taking over the role from Ashley Eckstein.
Screen Rant caught up with Filoni after the Lucasfilm Showcase panel at Star Wars Celebration, where the Ahsoka trailer premiered. He revealed how Dawson has fully embodied the character of Ahsoka and explained how Dawson’s stunning performance in The Mandalorian gave him the confidence to make the Ahsoka series, knowing she could handle such an important role. Read more of his words below:
The biggest question is, “Who is going to portray this character?” That is no small thing. In fact, it’s probably the most important thing. And luckily, through different discussions, Rosario really rose to the top. When I met her, I was like, “There’s no doubt to me that she’s going to be this person.” And it’s a fascinating thing when you walk on set, because she’s there so early. When I show up, she’s already Ahsoka. I’m in the village, and I’m talking to Ahsoka, and then we go on set, and we’re in the Star Wars galaxy. And then we go back off, but she’s Ahsoka. Because by the time I leave, she’s still getting off.
It’s a very bizarre thing, but you learn to trust that this person is going to take and embody this, and she really does. What was funny was, of all the complications I thought there would be to bring Ahsoka to live-action, I thought, “That’s going to be a big challenge. I have to really help Rosario.” And then I start directing her in the episode “The Jedi” [in] The Mandalorian, and I’m like, “Okay, she’s got this. Now I can worry about all these other things, and I can focus on all this, because this is gonna be good.” And I’ve just felt that way. It really made me confidant to do the series. Who knows where that goes now?
Rosario Dawson’s Performance Is The Key To Dave Filoni’s Ahsoka
Ahsoka has a rich history as a key player throughout Clone Wars and Rebels before making the jump to live action with The Mandalorian. She began as Anakin Skywalker’s Padawan and while a part of the Jedi order, she grew close to Anakin, Padme, Obi-Wan, and Captain Rex. In Rebels, she was a key spy for the Rebellion while it was still disconnected cells and eventually fought Darth Vader after discovering the truth about his identity. In Mandalorian, she begins Grogu’s journey to training with Luke Skywalker and lays the groundwork for her hunt for Thrawn, which will continue in Ahsoka.
Finding an actor who can take the wealth of history and Ashley Eckstein’s performance to fully embody this well-established character, whose journey Filoni has been almost the sole architect of, is a seemingly impossible task. However, Dawson is able to bring all of these elements together while adding her own nuances to fully bring Ahsoka to life on screen in a new way. So much so that Filoni sees her as Ahsoka and has enough faith in her to go full throttle with the Ahsoka series.
Dawson’s performance, which gave Filoni the confidence to helm the highly anticipated Ahsoka series, may in part explain why this series is tying in characters from Rebels. Filoni is able to continue stories and character arcs that he has spent years building, including following through on the cliffhanger ending of Rebels series finale. Finding the right actress to bring Ahsoka to live-action has been instrumental to Filoni’s growth in the live-action space with Ahsoka and the New Republic-era movie he will direct.
Ahsoka premieres on Disney Plus in August of 2023.
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