With TV being the main source of fresh Star Wars content for the last few years, there were plenty of announcements centred around future series at Star Wars Celebration 2023.
Exclusive clips from several of the following shows were presented throughout the four days of SWCE. Alongside these early glimpses, there were several announcements related to casting reveals and release dates. Here’s every update we got about Star Wars TV shows over the last few days.
Ahsoka
We already knew that Rosario Dawson would reprise her role as live-action Ahsoka in the titular show, but the first trailer for the show revealed a flurry of beloved characters making their live-action debuts. This includes Natasha Liu Bordizzo’s Sabine Wren, Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s Hera Syndulla, Eman Esfandi’s Exra Bridger, and Lars Mikkelsen’s Grand Admiral Thrawn, as well as the return of the droids, Chopper and lightsaber expert Huyang, voiced by David Tennant. After appearing in Andor, Genevieve O’Reilly’s Rebel leader Mon Mothma is due to return as well.
“I started hearing whispers about Thrawn’s return as heir to the Empire,” Ahsoka says in the teaser, revealing that Thrawn will surely be the main villain of the series.
The Acolyte
Creator Leslye Headland was one of the first on stage to reveal more about the Star Wars show travelling the furthest back in the timeline. Describing the upcoming release as “Frozen meets Kill Bill”, production is apparently well underway.
The Acolute will feature plenty of Jedi—including the very first Wookiee Jedi Master, played by Joonas Suotamo. This marks his return to a galaxy far, far away to play Kelnacca, having previously stood in for and taken over from Peter Mayhew to play Chewbacca, the most well-known Wookiee in the franchise.
“It’s the High Republic near the beginning of the prequels and an exciting part of the timeline,” Headland said on stage. “This is when the bad guys are outnumbered. They are the underdogs.”
BIG NEWS! I'm playing Wookiee Jedi Kelnacca in #TheAcolyte! That's right, a WOOKIEE JEDI. I'm beyond thrilled to be returning to #StarWars as part of a new and exciting original story and I can't wait for you to see it. pic.twitter.com/TTrS3F0Gh4
— Joonas Suotamo (@JoonasSuotamo) April 7, 2023
Skeleton Crew
While this live-action show centred around a group of Jedi children doesn’t have a release date quite yet, it’s still expected to arrive sometime this year. Jude Law stars alongside a younger cast of characters, paired with a lineup of well-known directors: Spider-Man: No Way Home’s Jon Watts, The Green Knight’s David Lowery, Everything Everywhere All at Once’s the Daniels, and Beef’s Jake Schreier, as well as Star Wars alumni Bryce Dallas Howard and Lee Isaac Chung.
Ravi Cabot-Conyers, Kyriana Kratter, and Robert Timothy Smith join Jude Law as the cast of #SkeletonCrew. Original series coming to @DisneyPlus in 2023. pic.twitter.com/X5lGI1sqa6
— Star Wars (@starwars) April 7, 2023
Andor
Attendees also saw and heard more about Andor’s second season, with creator Tony Gilroy taking to the stage to confirm that the cast and crew are about halfway through shooting the second. This means that the second and final season will premiere in August 2024.
“If you know you’re ending, it really helps,” Gilroy said, as reported by The Ringer. “There are a lot of shows, shows that I love, and they’re trying to figure out where they’re going. We know where we’re going. It’s kind of like the escape from prison: You know where you’re going.”
ONE WAY OUT! ONE WAY OUT! ONE WAY OUT! #StarWarsCelebration #SWCE #StarWars #Andor pic.twitter.com/aWAhd47fsS
— The SWU @ #SWCE (@TheSWU) April 7, 2023
Featured image: Disney/Lucasfilm
