Former Jedi Ahsoka Tano is getting her own series on Disney+, but showrunner Dave Filoni says casual Star Wars fans won't have to catch up on the past 15 years of the character's history when watching the upcoming Ahsoka.
"We never want to create a situation where you feel like you have to have seen these things because then you're missing out," Filoni told IGN. "I don't know how fans feel, but like, do you have to have seen [Star Wars:] The Clone Wars to understand Ahsoka? No, you don't have to have seen that."
"Does it help, will you know more and understand more? Sure," Filoni continued. "If you haven't checked it out -- but you can, thanks to Disney+ -- it's right there."
Rosario Dawson returns as Ahsoka in the upcoming series, which takes place in the wake of the fall of the Galactic Empire. The series also features Hayden Christensen, Lars Mikkelsen and Ray Stevenson as Darth Vader, Grand Admiral Thrawn and new character Baylon Skoll respectively.
Ahsoka Tano, voiced by Ashley Eckstein, first appeared in 2008's Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated film, becoming the young Padawan of Anakin Skywalker. The character trained under Anakin and was a regular on the subsequent animated series, but was framed for a murder in the series' fifth season. While eventually cleared, the experience led Ahsoka to ultimately leave the Jedi Order.
An older Ahsoka later joined the Rebel Alliance, operating under a codename supporting the activities of Ezra Bridger and his allies in the subsequent Rebels animated series. Ahsoka eventually encountered her former teacher -- now Darth Vader -- in Rebels' second season, with her fate remaining unknown until the series' fourth and final season.
Filoni adds such history, however, has never stopped fans from following Star Wars. "We picked up A New Hope at Episode IV, right? So, Star Wars, to us -- we came in in the middle of it," Filoni says. "So there is a kind of history in Star Wars of just diving right into the story."
Dawson's live-action version of the character was later introduced in the second season of The Mandalorian on Disney+. After refusing to train The Child, who Ahsoka revealed was named Grogu, she directs the show's titular character Din Djarin to take Grogu to a Jedi temple, where he later connects with none other than Luke Skywalker. Ahsoka also appeared on The Mandalorian spin-off series The Book of Boba Fett.
"So I really do dive right into the story with Ahsoka," Filoni said, "But, I know more about it because of the work of The Mandalorian."
Ahsoka arrives on Disney+ in August.
Source: IGN