Additional ‘Ahsoka’ Cast Announced, Including Fan Favorite Villain Grand Admiral Thrawn

Additional casting details for the upcoming series Star Wars: Ahsoka were announced at Star Wars Celebration in London, including the live-action Grand Admiral Thrawn after audiences received a peak at him in yesterday’s trailer.

Grand Admiral Thrawn, or Mitth’raw’nuruodo, was created in the 1990s by author Timothy Zahn as part of a series of novels covering the events following Return of the Jedi, beginning with Star Wars: Heir to the Empire, the name of which was referenced in the series trailer. In the novels, Thrawn is a ruthless, intelligent, and cunning Grand Admiral in the Empire who takes control of the remaining Imperial Fleet and devises a plan to take down the New Republic. Thrawn is a member of the rarely explored Chiss species from the planet Csilla, a species that is largely considered intimidating in-part due to their blue skin and glowing red eyes.

While Thrawn quickly became a fan favorite, his status as a canon character was removed when Disney purchased Lucasfilm and rebranded the majority of the novels as “Legends” rather than canon — a fate many beloved characters in the novels faced. Where Thrawn stands out, however, is the fact that his character was not forgotten to Legends. Dave Filoni brought the character back into canon with the 2016 animated series Star Wars: Rebels, maintaining the majority of the characters traits and backstory.

Lars Mikkelsen voiced Thrawn in the animated series, and joined the stage during the Ahsoka panel today to announce he would bring the role to live action.

Joining Mikkelsen in the cast of villains are Ray Stevenson, Ivanna Sakhno, and Diana Lee Inosanto as Morgan Elsbeth, the antagonist from season 2 of The Mandalorian where Ahsoka Tano was introduced to live action. Stevenson and Sakhno portray the additional red (possibly blood orange) lightsaber-wielding villains that appeared in the trailer, named Baylon and Shin.

Additionally, David Tennant was officially announced to return to his role Emmy Award winning role as the droid Professor Huyang. Mary Elizabeth Winstead was also confirmed to bring another Rebels character to live action in Hera Syndulla.

Ahsoka will premiere on Disney+ this August. Stay tuned with Nerds & Beyond for updates, and for more news from a galaxy far, far away, check back here.