Ahsoka season 2 has finally been confirmed by Lucasfilm, meaning Leia Organa – one of the New Republic’s greatest heroes – inevitably needs to be recast. With the launch of The Mandalorian, Lucasfilm moved into the New Republic Era – a time roughly five years after the events of Return of the Jedi. This has become one of the most exciting periods for modern Star Wars, with the recent announcement of The Mandalorian & Grogu movie.
So far, the various TV shows set during this period have managed to put some distance between themselves and the key players of both the original trilogy and the sequels. Grand Admiral Thrawn’s return means the scale of the story has completely changed, though, and that distance will necessarily shrink. It also means a recast has just become essential.
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Ahsoka Season 2 Needs To Include Leia Organa
Carrie Fisher sadly passed away in December 2016, but her character Princess Leia has maintained a presence in the Star Wars franchise – rightly so because of her significance. Leia was inclued in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker through previously filmed footage, but the character has also appeared in Star Wars Rebels and was portrayed by Vivien Lyra Blair in Obi-Wan Kenobi. In both cases, Leia’s inclusion was relatively easy because of the formats chosen.
Star Wars has resisted recasting iconic characters after the box office failure of Solo: A Star Wars Story. Because Rebels is animated and Obi-Wan Kenobi depicts Leia as a child, both felt like they weren’t real recasts. Ahsoka, however, takes place in the era where viewers now Leia best – at a time when she would have been portrayed by Fisher herself. Lucasfilm has used de-aging for Mark Hamill in The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett, but that of course isn’t an option for Leia.
Ahsoka was a spiritual successor to Star Wars Rebels, and Leia had a presence there – building strong relationships with Hera Syndulla’s rebel cell. Ahsoka‘s writers seem well aware of them, finding a workaround by alluding to Leia and giving a C-3PO cameo in Ahsoka‘s finale in which the droid represented Hera. Those strategies can only work for so long, though.
It’s Time For Star Wars To Recast Leia – To Honor Carrie Fisher
This means a recast is, sadly, in order. It’s not believable that Leia would sit out Ahsoka season 2 and The Mandalorian & Grogu, particularly as things will be ramping up with the return of Thrawn and given that Leia has proven to be Hera’s ally, covering for her in Ahsoka season 1. This was Leia’s time as a political titan, and it would be a massive injustice to the character – and to Fisher’s legacy – were she not to be involved.
Even other excuses, such as Ben Solo being young at the time, wouldn’t hold up. Ben was born in 5 ABY (“After the Battle of Yavin”), and Ahsoka takes place sometime between 9 and 12 ABY, making him one of 14 Force-users alive during Ahsoka. However, Star Wars has been clear that neither of Ben’s parents were exactly hands-on. The canon Rise of Kylo Ren comic shows that as early as age 2, Ben had nanny droids because Han returned to his old ways and Leia was so involved with the New Republic. So this argument wouldn’t work.
Given that, a recast is the only option, both out of necessity for the logic of the plot and to honor Carrie Fisher. Leia’s on-screen time as a heroic General and especially as a Jedi-in-training were unfortunately limited, and Fisher’s character deserves the chance to showcase her most powerful era in the Star Wars franchise. Leia needs to be shown as the hero that Carrie Fisher should have gotten to more visibly be — the hero Leia was. Vivien Lyra Blair’s portrayal made it clear that Star Wars can cast a realistic Leia, so hopefully Ahsoka season 2 provides one as well.
- Cast
- Rosario Dawson , Natasha Liu Bordizzo , Hayden Christensen , Eman Esfandi , Ivanna Sakhno , Mary Elizabeth Winstead , Ray Stevenson , Genevieve O’Reilly , Lars Mikkelsen , Diana Lee Inosanto
- Creator(s)
- Dave Filoni
- Streaming Service(s)
- Disney Plus
- Directors
- Dave Filoni , Steph Green , Rick Famuyiwa , Geeta Vasant Patel , Peter Ramsey , Jennifer Getzinger
