YodaAhsoka Tano, initially called Ashla, is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise. Introduced as the 14-year-old Jedi Padawan of Anakin Skywalker in 2008, she is a supporting character in the animated film Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) and the subsequent animated television series (2008-2014; 2020). Ahsoka reappears in the sequel series Star Wars Rebels (2014-2018) as a member of the Rebel Alliance, under the codename Fulcrum; in the live-action film Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019) as a voiceover cameo; and in the miniseries Tales of the Jedi (2022). She is voiced by Ashley Eckstein, who also narrated the audiobook version of the novel Ahsoka (2016), following the character's exploits in-between the events of The Clone Wars and Rebels under the alias Ashla, which was ultimately adapted as "Resolve", the first season finale of Tales of the Jedi . In 2020, Ahsoka made her first live-action debut in the second season of the Disney+ series The Mandalorian, portrayed by Rosario Dawson. Dawson reprised the role in a 2022 episode of the spin-off series The Book of Boba Fett, and is set to star in her limited series, Ahsoka, in 2023. Serving as a foil for Anakin Skywalker, she has been highlighted as a strong female character in the franchise. Ahsoka was created by George Lucas and Dave Filoni. The character was developed to illustrate how Anakin Skywalker develops from the brash, undisciplined Padawan apprentice in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002) to the more reserved Jedi Knight in Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005). Lucas renamed her after the ancient Indian emperor Ashoka; the spelling was then altered by screenwriter Henry Gilroy. Filoni, The Clone Wars supervising director and writer, wrote a fable about Ahsoka's early childhood to help develop the character. He imagined the discovery that she has "the right stuff" to become a Jedi would be a cause for celebration in her hometown. It would also provide him with insight into his relationship with his own master, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and depict how their relationship matured. Ahsoka and Anakin's relationship was seen as an essential story arc spanning both the animated film and the Clone Wars television series. George Lucas (top) and Dave Filoni (bottom), Ahsoka Tano's co-creators He, therefore, shifted his focus and instead wrote Ahsoka primarily as a Jedi who just happens to be an adolescent female. Ashley Eckstein, who primarily voiced Ahsoka, said she and the writers were aware that audiences initially found the character annoying, and that there was a "fine line" between Ahsoka being bratty and becoming endearing. Although Ahsoka leaves the Jedi Order at the end of The Clone Wars ' fifth season, the storyline initially had her return to the Order. Lucas believed Ahsoka survived Order 66, the mass murder of the Jedi portrayed in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. The Fulcrum character introduced early in Star Wars Rebels was always understood to be Ahsoka. Filoni, who served as executive producer and co-creator of Rebels, worked with Lucas on identifying what Ahsoka would know about Anakin's fate. Filoni also collaborated with executive producer Simon Kinberg and season one executive producer Greg Weisman on developing Ahsoka's role as a Rebel agent. The show's writers were excited for Ahsoka's return in the second season, and Filoni was anxious about Rebels instead becoming "The Ahsoka Tano Show". Consequently, Filoni required that Ahsoka play a role in service of Rebels ' main characters, Ezra Bridger and Kanan Jarrus; he saw Ahsoka's new role as similar to the one played by Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars. Although Ahsoka is more mature in Rebels, Filoni wanted "aspects of that kid who was there to shine through". Filoni cites fans' passion for the character as one reason for Ahsoka's prominence in Clone Wars and Rebels. Once production on The Clone Wars began, it took about six months for Eckstein and the writers to understand Ahsoka; consequently, much of the dialogue for the first half of season one was re-recorded to depict the character better. Eckstein also said the Ahsoka character was solidified by the casting of Matt Lanter as Anakin, which occurred halfway through the first season. Eckstein reprised the role of Ahsoka for Rebels, although she did not do all of Fulcrum's voice work. Not knowing Ahsoka's experiences between The Clone Wars and Rebels at times presented challenges for Eckstein's performance. Ahsoka as she appears in Star Wars: Rebels. Ahsoka wears "pseudo- samurai " armor in Star Wars Rebels, and her lightsabers' lack of color indicates she is neither a Jedi nor Sith. Her facial markings and head-tails' length differ from those in The Clone Wars due to her age. Ahsoka's design evolved over three years before her introduction in the Clone Wars film. Ahsoka initially appears in what Wired called a "tube-top-and-miniskirt costume." Filoni said the changes were meant to bring the show's aesthetic closer to that of Revenge of the Sith and were made possible by improved animation techniques. For the seventh and final season of Clone Wars, Ahsoka's design was once again tweaked due to improvements in animation technology. Her costume was also changed to a more grayish-blue color, similar to her appearance Star Wars Rebels, which aired before the season. Ahsoka often uses a reverse lightsaber grip, similar to that of the Japanese film character Zatoichi. Along with the costume change in the third season of Clone Wars, Ahsoka also received a second lightsaber. Ahsoka's armor in Rebels is based on a "pseudo- samurai look" influenced by photographs of samurai women. The armor is meant to appear as if she found it in an ancient Jedi temple, and her lightsabers' colorless blades indicate she is neither a Jedi nor a Sith. Ahsoka Tano was introduced in the 2008 Clone Wars animated film (serving as a pilot for the television series of the same name) as a 14-year-old Padawan apprentice, assigned by Yoda to Anakin Skywalker to teach him responsibility.
