The Star Wars franchise has been a vital part of pop culture for decades now, expanding from movies to TV shows, both live-action and animated. Those two worlds will collide with the upcoming release of Ahsoka, starring Rosario Dawson as the title character. The highly anticipated show will also feature some beloved characters from the cartoon Star Wars Rebels, who will appear in live-action for the first time. And a panel from Star Wars Celebration revealed the first look at both Sabine Wren and Hera Syndulla, with the latter played by Birds of Prey actress Mary Elizabeth Winstead.
Since the release of The Mandalorian, the events of animated shows like The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels have become more connected to the live-action side of the franchise. That'll obviously continue with Ahsoka, and this morning's panel at the Star Wars Celebration debuted the first look at Hera and Sabine in that upcoming show, which will be available for those with a Disney+ subscription. That includes a glimpse at Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Hera. And yes, she looks good in green.
I mean, how cool is that? Star Wars Rebels fans out there are no doubt going to be thrilled to see the beloved pilot finally show up in live-action. And the fact that she's played by genre icon Mary Elizabeth Winstead makes it even more thrilling. And I personally can't wait to see how both she and Sabine will factor into the story of Ahsoka's first season.
Another Star Wars Rebels fan favorite that's also going to have a part in Ahsoka is young Mandalorian Sabine Wren. In live-action, she'll be played by actress Natasha Liu Bordizzo, who was seen in projects like The Society and Daniel Radcliffe's Guns Akimbo. Check out the first glimpse of Bordizzo as Sabine below:
And just like that, two members of the Star Wars Rebels crew have finally made their way into live-action. That team worked with Ahsoka Tano a number of times throughout the animated series, so it makes a great deal of sense that they'd factor into the story of Rosario Dawson's highly anticipated upcoming Star Wars show. But the question is: what exactly will their mission be? You can check out the teaser trailer for Ahsoka below:
Of course, hardcore Rebels fans are still waiting on the debut of another beloved character. Namely, young Jedi Ezra Bridger, who will be played by actor Eman Esfandi. Chopper the droid also appears briefly in the first teaser, further showing the connective tissue between Rebels and Ahsoka.
While much of Ahsoka's contents remain a mystery, it certainly seems like we'll be watching the former Jedi Padawan as she seeks out Grand Admiral Thrawn. He was name-dropped when Rosario Dawson appeared in The Mandalorian, seemingly hinting at what's to come. Thrawn originated in the 1991 Star Wars book Heir to the Empire, so his live-action debut has also been a long time coming.
Ahsoka doesn't have a release date yet but is expected to arrive sometime this coming August. In the meantime, check out the TV premiere list to plan your next binge-watch.
