According to a report by Slashfilm, Rosario Dawson has been cast as Ahsoka Tano in the upcoming season of The Mandalorian. This will be Ahsoka’s first appearance outside of an animated series.
Ahsoka Tano first appeared in the animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars, which debuted in 2008 and just released its final season last month.* She is Anakin Skywalker’s Jedi apprentice and often fought along with Anakin, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda, and other major Star Wars characters in the Clone Wars.
*Full disclosure: although I was/am a huge fan of the series, I haven’t gotten around to the final season, nor have I seen Rebels (the other animated series in which Ahsoka is featured) or read any of the ancillary novels. It’s also been a while since I’ve watched Clone Wars, so please feel free to contribute any corrections and/or omissions in the comments!
I think it’s safe to say that Ahsoka is among the most loved Star Wars characters that had not appeared in the marquee movies. Additionally, The Clone Wars is, in my opinion (depending on which day you ask me), tied with The Mandalorian for third best Star Wars property behind Empire Strikes Back and A New Hope. And most rankings of all the properties have the show similarly around the top five. Of course, comparing an original story, a sequel, an animated series with over a hundred episodes, and a live-action series with ten episodes–all of whose creation spans nearly half a century–is like comparing apples to oranges to peanuts to dogs.
Rosario Dawson is no slouch herself. She is a multiple-award-winning actor with years of success doing everything from drama to musicals to comedy to voice work. My first reaction was “GREAT!” because I’m always happy to see her in whatever I’m watching. My second reaction was “Wait, how old is Ahsoka Tano?” because Rosario Dawson is 40ish, I know Ahsoka Tano as a teenager, and the Star Wars timeline is confusing. But a little digging got me to this excellent article in Collider that puts Ahsoka at about 40 during the events of The Mandalorian.
Yes, worrying about an Earth human’s age lining up with that of a Togruta from a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away is nitpicky, but hey, I’ve had a lot of time on my hands the last few days.
All in all, this looks like yet another great addition to The Mandalorian. I am beyond excited to see one of my favorite Star Wars characters portrayed by one of my favorite actors in one of my favorite shows. How about you?