Highlights
- Ariana Greenblatt’s appearance in Star Wars: Ahsoka marks the first time a young version of a character from an animated show has been portrayed in live-action.
- Greenblatt’s performance as the younger Ahsoka resonated with fans, highlighting the tragedy of her involvement in the Clone Wars as a child.
- The use of live-action adaptations in Star Wars: Ahsoka has been successful in keeping fan interest and delivering iconic moments from the animated series.
Ariana Greenblatt’s appearance in Star Wars: Ahsoka set a new first for the franchise and gave fans of the animated projects an eye-opening look at one of the most impactful moments in the Star Wars continuity.
Based on the eponymous character first created by Dave Filoni for 2008’s The Clone Wars animated feature and then as a main character in the resultant Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series, Star Wars: Ahsoka follows an older, wiser Ahsoka as she investigates new threats to the galaxy far, far, away after the fall of the first Galactic Empire and during the infancy of the New Republic. The series premiered on Disney Plus to an avalanche of positive reviews, surpassing The Mandalorian season 3 in viewership within the first week. From the blast of the whistle, Ahsoka has given fans of the animated series that inspired it much-appreciated revisits of iconic people and places from those shows in live-action
Ahsoka episode 5 played in select theaters as a mid-season fan celebration and made sure it didn’t disappoint either, making many a fan’s wishes come to fruition by bringing the iconic Siege of Mandalore from the Clone Wars era to live action in an epic flashback. As a result, fans got to see the show’s titular character at the age she was portrayed in for most of the Clone Wars animated series in live action for the first time, an appearance that The Direct highlights as the first time in Star Wars history that a young version of a character created for an animated show has been portrayed in live action. Rather than special effects transforming lead star Rosario Dawson, the younger Ahsoka was played by the young and talented actress Greenblatt.
Greenblatt previously appeared in the hit film Barbie as Sasha and as young Gamora in the MCU’s Avengers: Infinity War, which only fell to the position of third highest-grossing debut for the franchise after being surpassed by Spider-Man: Far From Home. Her appearance as a younger Ahsoka adds to her already impressive credentials and puts her on the same stage as the legendary Hayden Christensen for the episode. Several viewers also took to social media to praise the performance, admitting that the portrayal had driven home the real tragedy of Ahsoka’s involvement in the Clone Wars as a child in a way that the highly celebrated animated shows couldn’t.
Greenblatt’s performance surprised fans and found itself in good company alongside other unexpected fan moments, such as the Star Wars character Captain Rex making his live-action debut in the same scene. Furthermore, the fan reaction to the moment proves the adaptation of animated shows and other media to live action can serve a purpose beyond gratuity.
Star Wars: Ahsoka has managed to keep an enviable amount of fan interest throughout its run so far, and the constant use of the live-action medium to breathe new life into iconic moments played a major part in that trend. As the series progresses, fans are getting closer to seeing Ezra Bridger appear, a moment teased by Sabine Wren actress Liu Bordizzo. The show’s stock is seemingly only set to rise as each new episode delivers exactly what longtime fans of the franchise are looking for.
Star Wars: Ahsoka is currently available for streaming on Disney Plus.
Source: The Direct