Disney has cast Eman Esfandi as Ezra Bridger in its upcoming Star Wars series, Ashoka. Ezra Bridger first appeared on the animated show Star Wars Rebels. The young Jedi in training quickly became a fan favorite and, over the course of the show’s run, he grows into a full-blown Jedi. Until now, Ezra Bridger was only ever represented in animation; however, all that is about to change when Ashoka hits Disney Plus. Ashoka will star Rosario Dawson as the titular Ashoka Tano, and as of now, the show still has no release date.
Rosario Dawson made her live-action debut as the fan-favorite Ashoka Tano on the Disney Plus series, The Mandalorian. She also appeared in The Book of Boba Fett. Disney has been pretty secretive about the show, but we do know it will also star Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, and Ray Stevenson. Hayden Christensen will also return as Anakin Skywalker, which is sure to delight fans. The character of Ashoka Tano began in Star Wars the Clone Wars as Anakin Skywalker’s young apprentice. Over the course of the show, she matured and became a formidable warrior. When last we saw her she was an adult and Ashoka will likely continue her story from where we left her in The Book of Boba Fett.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Eman Esfandi has joined the cast of Ashoka as fan-favorite Jedi Ezra Bridger. Bridger was originally voiced by Taylor Gray on Star Wars Rebels. There is no denying that Esfandi looks the part and he’s got the acting chops to boot. Eman Esfandi has starred in a few films including Red 11 and best picture nominee King Richard. He joins a growing cast that keeps getting better and better with each actor announced. Fans are sure to be excited by this news, as Ezra Bridger finally makes the transition to Star Wars live-action.
This is just awesome casting on the part of Disney. He certainly looks the part and based on his age, we will likely be picking up with Bridger shortly after the events of Star Wars Rebels. As a fan of Star Wars Rebels, I couldn’t be more excited. Given what happened to Bridger in the finale of the show I’m excited to see where he went from there. Also, this casting validates Rebels’ place in the Star Wars canon. I know all Star Wars properties are official canon, but it also feels like live-action is taken more seriously than the animated ones. Maybe that’s just me projecting, but that’s what it feels like. Now that Bridger will be portrayed in live-action, the events and characters of Rebels can take their rightful place in the Star Wars universe. Just as Ashoka appearing in The Mandalorian validated The Clone Wars. Sadly, Ashoka has no release date yet but I can’t wait to see it when it hits Disney Plus.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
