Before Rosario Dawson made her debut as Ahsoka Tano in The Mandalorian, we'd heard about plans for Dave Filoni to develop an animated follow-up to Star Wars Rebels.
Seeing as the show ended on a major cliffhanger, the news was welcomed by fans, but Filoni has since shifted his focus to live-action projects. As well as this August's Ahsoka, he'll take the helm of a Star Wars movie rumoured to be titled Heir to the Empire.
Talking to Total Film, Dawson appeared to confirm what we already suspected when she said Ahsoka is essentially a fifth season of Rebels.
"I’m pretty sure Dave said that this is basically like the fifth season of Rebels," the actress recalled. "So it felt nice to feel that sort of continuation with these people she’s got such a rich history with."
"You can see that with her mission that she has, going after Thrawn, and believing that he’s still alive, and holding Ezra in her heart because they have a really beautiful, long history as well."
It was in the closing moments of Rebels that a flash-forward showed Sabine Wren reunited with an Ahsoka who was decked out in a white cloak and wielding a mysterious staff. The narration suggested the old friends were going to track down Ezra Bridger together, and it sounds like we'll finally find out what leads to Ahsoka's transformation in her live-action solo series.
"We made a lot of Gandalf references," Dawson teases. "Ahsoka the Grey. And at the end of Rebels, you get to see her in white."
"There is this idea of her becoming wiser, more settled in herself, and kind of exploring herself and developing in a way that I think is really remarkable for someone of that level of prowess and skill and aptitude – that there are still places to reach towards. There’s still more wisdom."
While it's been said that Ahsoka is going to be accessible to all Star Wars fans, this series is clearly going to be most rewarding to those who have long followed Filoni's work, particularly when it comes to the characters he helped create.
Ahsoka is set to premiere on Disney+ on August 23.