Star Wars writer-director, Dave Filoni had an emotional reaction to seeing an episode of the upcoming Ahsoka series. Announced in 2020, the show will see the return of Rosario Dawson as the titular character, a role she first played in The Mandalorian season 2 and reprised briefly for an episode of The Book of Boba Fett. She will be joined by Hayden Christensen as Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, Natasha Liu Bordizzo as Sabine Wren, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead in a currently undisclosed role.
Alongside George Lucas, Filoni co-created Ahsoka Tano for the 2008 animated film, Star Wars: The Clone Wars and the subsequent television series of the same name. While Ahsoka was heavily criticized following her initial appearances, Filoni watched her eventually become one of the most popular Star Wars characters, which led to a desire to see Anakin's former Padawan in live-action. Especially after the reveal Ahsoka brings Star Wars Rebels characters to live-action, anticipation has been high for her solo series. And now, Filoni's reaction to an episode will increase excitement even more.
While on stage at the Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (via @laughing_place), Dawson revealed that Filoni had an emotional reaction to seeing an episode from the Ahsoka television series. She recalled Filoni and producer Carrie Beck leaving a viewing of a completed episode "glossy-eyed" and calling it "a religious experience." Read what Dawson said below:
"So, I will say this. I will probably get in trouble for saying this. But Dave saw one of the episodes already edited together and he walked out with Carrie Beck. Both glossy-eyed. And he said to me that it was, 'A religious experience.'"
It is understandable that Filoni would have such an emotional reaction to seeing a completed Ahsoka episode. His role in creating Ahsoka is one of his most notable accomplishments at Lucasfilm. As his career continued, Filoni has continued weaving Ahsoka's journey into nearly every major Star Wars television show show since her inception. The character finally receiving a live-action series is something that would undoubtedly bring an immense sense of pride and joy for Filoni.
As story details of the Ahsoka series has remained relatively under wraps, audiences can only speculate as to what the episode Filoni saw entails. Rebels ended with the fledgling Jedi, Ezra Bridger, possibly sacrificing himself to defeat Grand Admiral Thrawn and save the planet of Lothal from the Empire. However, with the possibility of Ezra's survival, Ahsoka enlists the help of Sabine to find him and bring him back. The episode may not only feature Ahsoka, but a number of characters Filoni created for his animated shows that have finally been realized in live-action. After years of developing a universe full of lore outside of the main Star Wars films, cultivating a healthy legion of supporters, Filoni would likely react emotionally as his original stories for these characters are now made more real.
Source: @laughing_place