Whenever Disney and Lucasfilm announced the abundance of new Star Wars TV shows coming to streaming via Disney+, it kinda seemed like 2021 would be an endless geyser of intergalactic news. Unfortunately, the only major updates as of late all concern Gina Carano being fired from The Mandalorian, and the back-and-forth debates that ensued. Now, though, fans were graced with a potential update which may very well indicate that a live-action version of Star Wars Rebels' Ezra Bridger has been cast for The Mandalorian's Ahsoka Tano spinoff, or possibly even for Season 3 of the flagship show.
The speculation kicked off quite rabidly whenever Aladdin star Mena Massoud took to Instagram for a shirtless shot of himself appearing read to do anything from fist-fighting to arm-wrestling to boinking. And while the picture itself is obviously worthy of roaming eyeballs, it's Massoud's caption for the picture that really made Star Wars' fans explode. Check it out!
For those who might not have watched Star Wars Rebels in a bit, Mena Massoud's caption is a direct line from the series. Particularly Ezra Bridger says it during the ninth episode of Season 2, titled "Stealth Strike," to a bunch of Stormtroopers after he's been taken captive by the Empire. It's the perfect kind of semi-boastful line that will make Ezra a huge addition to The Mandalorian's growing universe, assuming Massoud's post isn't just meant to troll fans.
Had this post come out of nowhere, it might not have taken the Star Wars fandom by storm, but that is certainly not the case here. For a while now, Mena Massoud has been the most prominent name in the Ezra Bridger rumor mill, with the Aladdin star reportedly having verbally agreed to reteam with Disney for at least one Star Wars show, and possibly even more franchise fare. However, nothing was ever confirmed regarding those rumors, and this is seemingly the first time that Massoud has teased fans so hard about the possibility. Let's not forget the actor apparently had trouble getting any auditions after Aladdin, so hopefully this gig comes through and makes the hard work all worth it.
It also helps that Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni spent some of The Mandalorian Season 2 successfully bringing beloved Star Wars characters into the fold. And I'm not talking about Mark Hamill's Luke Skywalker in this instance, but rather Rosario Dawson's Ahsoka Tano and Katee Sackhoff's debut as Bo-Katan Kryze, since those were also Rebels characters brought into the live-action TV world. If anybody knows how to figure out timeline situations and what makes the most sense for these heroes, it's Filoni.
It's unclear if or when we'll get any more details about Mena Moussad's potential inclusion in The Mandalorian's Ahsoka Tano spinoff or any other Star Wars projects. Though we can be more than a little sure that even if he does join the popular streaming series, he won't be crossing paths with Benedict Cumberbatch's version of Thrawn, because that ain't happening.
