Rosario Dawson seemingly confirms Thrawn and Ezra Bridger casting on Instagram

Actress Rosario Dawson, who portrayed Ahsoka Tano in season 2 of The Mandalorian, has shared an Instagram Story post of the reported casting of two major live-action roles for future Star Wars projects.

Recently, Egyptian-Canadian actor Mena Massoud, who starred in the live-action Aladdin, was reportedly cast as Ezra Bridger from the animated show Rebels.

In the same report, Danish actor Lars Mikkelsen (House of Cards, Sherlock) is set to reprise his role as Grand Admiral Thrawn, who he voiced in the same show but may now play in a live-action capacity. His brother Mads Mikkelsen (Casino Royale, Hannibal) also played Galen Erso in Rogue One.

While the casting has yet to be officially confirmed by Lucasfilm, the roles have been widely reported among news sites. What was speculation up until now, however, is just what production these castings were meant for. Guesses ranged from season 3 of The Mandalorian to The Book of Boba Fett, but were mostly pinned on the upcoming Ahsoka series — which Dawson herself has been confirmed for.

This last one has some legitimacy to it. In season 2 of The Mandalorian during Ahsoka’s live-action debut, “Chapter 13: The Jedi”, she specially made reference to Thrawn, indicating that there were future story lines being developed for the characters together. Although there has been no word on when production is set to begin, the apparent casting of Thrawn and Bridger is indeed timely and the links between the characters would indicate that speculation regarding the news has at least some merit to it.

Ahsoka series cast

If the reported casting pans out, it will confirm a pattern of Lucasfilm’s new trend of bringing characters to life who were previously only seen in animation. The first to receive this treatment in the Disney era was Saw Gerrera from The Clone Wars. (Technically, Chopper also appeared in Rogue One, but droids don’t count!)

In a different age altogether, Boba Fett (who first appeared in the 1978 Star Wars Holiday Special) would go on to appear to live in The Empire Strikes Back.

The casting of newcomer Mena Massoud and Star Wars alumni Lars Mikkelsen also shows a willingness on Lucasfilm’s behalf to mix it up when it comes to casting. Katee Sackhoff voiced Kryze when she first appeared in 2012 and went on to fill out the role physically in 2020. Rosario Dawson, on the other hand, was a newcomer to the role as Ahsoka is voiced by Ashley Eckstein in all of her animated appearances.

What do you think of the casting news? Let us know in the comments below! For all things Star Wars. keep up with Dork Side of the Force.