The practicality of having an adorable little alien hanging around in The Mandalorian has seemingly rubbed off on the Star Wars franchise. When Ahsoka premieres, Grogu won't be the only funny little guy in a galaxy far, far away.
Earlier this year, Amandla Stenberg teased practical effects and creatures in Star Wars: The Acolyte. Some might have seen that as a refreshing break from an over-reliance on computer-generated imagery in recent shows. However, it may be more of an indication of how Star Wars will operate going forward. After Grogu (a.k.a. Baby Yoda) immediately captured the hearts of viewers and actors alike, it almost seemed like a waste for that idea to be a one-off. Apparently, the folks in charge took the concept to heart.
As seen briefly in the trailer for Ahsoka, an animatronic Loth-cat (a creature seen prominently on the planet Lothal in the animated series Star Wars Rebels) will feature rather prominently in the upcoming Ahsoka series, and several of the actors have already fallen for its charms. "That was my little buddy!" laughed Natasha Liu Bordizzo (Sabine Wren) in an interview with Empire Magazine. "That cat, the complexity of the design… I mean, it has a real skeleton under there, because that's how they control such intense facial expressions and everything." While the actress was busy bringing the young and artistic Mandalorian Sabine to live-action after the character's first appearance throughout Rebels, the little Loth-cat seemingly kept her company. She wasn't the only one.
"It was real, it was there!" added Mary Elizabeth Winstead, who plays the Twi'lek pilot Hera Syndulla (also originally from Rebels). Even Rosario Dawson, who has been portraying the titular sometimes-Jedi Ahsoka Tano in live-action since The Mandalorian season 2, was taken in by the little fuzzball. But she was also impressed with the technical aspect. "It would snarl and look cute," Dawson said. "Really, the detail was next-level." It seems clear what sort of vibe the effects department is going for, especially given one last comment from Bordizzo. "Move over, Grogu!"
While Ahsoka appears to be entirely about Ahsoka Tano, many have noticed that the series will more likely use her as a framing device to deliver a new live-action season of Star Wars Rebels. The finale of the latter series saw young Jedi Ezra Bridger seemingly sacrifice himself to save his friends from the tactical genius Grand Admiral Thrawn. He did this with the help of purrgil, whale-like creatures who can travel through hyperspace, launching the ship that held Ezra and Thrawn into unknown regions. A short epilogue showed Ahsoka setting off with Sabine in search of Ezra, and it looks like the new series will pick up right where that moment ended.
The effects being used for the Loth-cat could be one of the stand-out aspects of Ahsoka. Practical effects in sci-fi must be done right, and The Mandalorian set an ideal standard for creatures. Given how people like Werner Herzog immediately took a shine to Grogu, and now the cast of Ahsoka is similarly enamored with their little kitty friend, it certainly seems to be the right choice.
Ahsoka will premiere on Disney Plus in August 2023.
Source: Empire