Natasha Liu Bordizzo Teases A 'Huge Journey' For Sabine In 'Star Wars' Series 'Ahsoka'

Actress Natasha Liu Bordizzo is opening up on her role in the new "Star Wars" series "Ahsoka."

"The Society" actress has been cast as Sabine Wren, who fans know from the animated cartoon "Star Wars: Rebels." This will be the first time that Sabine will make an appearance in live-action, prompting Bordizzo to find a "balance" between the source material and the Disney+ live-action series.

Natasha Liu Bordizzo, "Ahsoka" star Rosario Dawson, and Hera Syndulla actress Mary Elizabeth Winstead all sat down with Entertainment Weekly on their Dagobah Dispatch podcast to discuss the new show. When asked about how she handled the original "Rebels" source material, Bordizzo explained that she tried to find a balance between the animated cartoon and the new show, which premieres on Disney+ this August.

"I watched it all with the intention of capturing the essence of the character and having almost this free storage bank of memories to go from, that they'd already worked so hard to create. It was awesome as an actor to have that," she explained. "But then live action is so different. So I absorbed it all, and then forgot it all at the same time — somewhere in the balance of that."

When asked how the character of Sabine might change from the animated series to the live-action show, Bordizzo said that Sabine has "been through a lot" but described her as "still a stubborn cookie." She went on to say, "But I think that you find her at the end of Rebels, she was a huge part of the liberation of Lothal and many regard her as this hero, but she so does not feel that way about herself. She's only thinking about the obligation she has toward her friend. She's got that mission in mind, not her hero status. And she has got a huge journey to go on with Ahsoka, so we find her at the start of that."

Although Natasha Liu Bordizzo said that she had to find a "balance" between the original "Rebels" cartoon and the live-action series, "Fargo" actress Mary Elizabeth Winstead said that it was actually a "luxury" to have so much information to inform the character of Hera Syndulla, who will also make her first appearance in live-action in the new "Ahsoka" series.

“Having a character who’s already existed and has such a rich history on something like Rebels, as an actor, it’s incredible,” Winstead said. “Because sometimes we’re tasked with creating our own backstories or trying to flesh out a character that doesn’t really have that much on the page. And so to play a character that has season after season of storylines and complex histories with everyone in their life and relationships and experiences was really something I’ve never experienced quite like that.”

She described his presence and the amount of material to inform her portrayal of the character as “a real luxury, for sure” and also credited "Rebels" and "Ahsoka" creator Dave Filoni for being present “to speak to about it every day on set.”

Although Rosario Dawson has played Ahsoka Tano in "The Mandalorian" and made a brief appearance in "The Book of Boba Fett," she revealed on the podcast that she had to undergo "pretty intense" lightsaber training that lasted two hours a day, seven days a week. “And then you add on when we were actually filming and doing these different battles and having to continue to studying it,” she explained.

Dawson noted that Ahsoka is “so fierce from the very beginning,” adding, “It was never a question about whether she is capable. She meets every single match just so head-on. There’s no hesitancy from her whatsoever, and that’s really different from someone who’s learning martial arts in their 40s who’s trying to protect their face.”

In addition to practicing her lightsaber training, Dawson also had to learn how to "use" the Force in real life to make it translate well on-screen. “It’s the intention and the desire behind it,” she explained. “I feel like I have it more than someone who just wants to move an object.”

“Ahsoka” will be available to stream on Disney+ starting in August 2023.