Multiple sources have confirmed that Rosario Dawson will play Ahsoka Tano in the upcoming second season of The Mandalorian. The reports were met with excitement as well as frustration from Star Wars fans, who were disappointed that Ahsoka’s voice actor from The Clone Wars, Ashley Eckstein, was not chosen to play Ahsoka in the character’s first live-action role. While there hasn’t been an official announcement from Lucasfilm about Ahsoka’s appearance on the show, it was officially confirmed that Dawson will be playing a “guest role” in The Mandalorian season 2 and will not be a series regular. Why wasn’t Eckstein cast for the role?
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Ahsoka Tano has grown into one of the most beloved and popular characters in the Star Wars franchise. Ashley Eckstein has voiced Ahsoka Tano since 2008, beginning with the animated Clone Wars film and then voicing Ahsoka in a lead role in the Clone Wars animated series in seasons 1-5 and currently season 7, which is the show’s final season. Ahsoka played a recurring role in Star Wars Rebels and also made a cameo vocal appearance in Rise of Skywalker, with Ashley Eckstein providing her voice. Given her past performances in the Star Wars franchise, it only seems natural for Eckstein to embody the character on the Disney+ live-action series The Mandalorian.
However, while Eckstein has consistently delivered impressive vocal performances and brought life to a character initially criticized, that does not necessarily mean her voice acting talents will translate to the nuances required for live-action performances. Ashley Eckstein does not have much experience acting on screen, having mainly played minor characters on TV shows and a few films in the past. A show with the production quality and acting caliber of The Mandalorian will need an actress with plenty of experience and proven on-screen ability to take on such an important character to the Star Wars franchise, despite Eckstein’s impressive voice acting talents.
Rosario Dawson is a veteran actress who has played several major roles, most recently playing Claire Temple on Daredevil and other shows in The Defenders universe. Dawson has also been interested in playing Ahsoka for some time, and has the support of many fans who believe she would be a perfect fit given Ahsoka’s estimated age at the time of The Mandalorian season 2. She would do a great job at depicting Ahsoka’s strength, wisdom and self-assuredness after fending for herself and fighting the empire for so long without being killed or captured. Fans have already begun creating concept art of what Dawson would look like as Ahsoka and visually, she fits the character perfectly.
Despite the disappointment that the woman behind the voice of Ahsoka Tano will not be reprising the role in The Mandalorian season 2, Star Wars fans have much to be excited about with an actress of Rosario Dawson’s quality handling the character’s first ever live-action appearance. The Mandalorian season 2 is currently slated to air this coming October exclusively on Disney+.
