Rosario Dawson Reveals ‘Ahsoka’ Was Inspired By THIS ‘Lord of the Rings’ Character

Actress Rosario Dawson is getting ready for audiences to see Ahsoka Tano’s journey continue in a galaxy far, far away.

After making her debut in the animated “The Clone Wars” and continuing into “Star Wars Rebels,” Dawson helped bring the character to life in the Disney+ live-action series “The Mandalorian” and “The Book of Boba Fett.”

Now Dawson is finally getting a chance to help Ahsoka shine in her own show, which will premiere on Disney+ later this month. Although fans have already seen her character mature over the years, Dawson revealed that her journey holds many similarities to another beloved character from “Lord of the Rings.”

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly that took place before the SAG-AFTRA strike, Rosario Dawson explained that series creator Dave Filoni was particularly interested in showing Ahsoka’s journey from a novice Padawan to a competent leader. That led Dawson to draw parallels to Gandalf’s journey from Gandalf the Grey to Gandalf the White in J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings.”

"In the animation, you saw her go to the white, but what I loved is the idea that there was even another level to her," Dawson explained. "Dave and I talked a lot about Gandalf the Gray and Gandalf the White — talking about that transition and how she's someone very capable and excellent and looked up to as a leader, but she still has levels of development to go."

"That push for more, that desire for more, that challenge that she pushes herself to is okay — and it's actually remarkable and important," she continued. "That's one of the reasons I've been drawn to her over the years, the fact that even with her excellence, she continues to push further."

Although Ahsoka has been alone for most of her journey in search of Thrawn, she will once again reunite with “Rebels” characters Hera Syndulla and Sabine Wren, who will be making their first live-action appearance in the new series.

"She seems very lone wolf, and we kind of felt that coming off of Rebels, where she works with all of these different folks, but she's really on her own in a lot of ways," Dawson added. "What I really liked about this [show] is that we get to flesh that out a little bit more."

She went on to say, "We get to see what that's like for her in this position and the path she's choosing as a sort of ronin, just this warrior on her own. And I really loved that we get to rekindle some of these relationships that she's had from her past."

Actor Hayden Christensen is best known for portraying the young Anakin Skywalker in the “Star Wars” prequel trilogy. He later reprised his role in the Obi-Wan Kenobi Disney+ prequel series, which also saw Ewan McGregor reprise his role as the titular character.

Believe it or not, Rosario Dawson revealed that she and the actor who might portray Darth Vader in “Ahsoka” actually go way back, as they were both classmates at the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute early on in their careers. "It's pretty remarkable and exciting," Dawson told Total Film of their shared history. "We were teenagers, and then I saw him right immediately afterward go into this universe. I never could have fathomed that I would have had any part of that, besides just being a fan of his, and being really proud of him."

She also played coy about the possibility that he would appear in the new Disney+ series after recently reprising his role in “Kenobi” last year. "It's just been really cool that at this moment, I'm joining it, and he's been able to come back [in 2022’s Obi-Wan Kenobi] and also get embraced by the Star Wars family in a way that I think is much deserved," she said.

"It's definitely one of those things that would be super cool if he was [in Ahsoka], but I'm just really grateful that we're in the same universe," she added, hinting at the possibility that Darth Vader will make an appearance. Fans will just have to tune into "Ahsoka" when it premieres on Disney+ on August 23 to find out!