The Perfect Way for Star Wars to Bring Back Ariana Greenblatt's Young Ahsoka

The Intriguing Portrayal of Young Ahsoka by Ariana Greenblatt

There is a perfect way that Disney could reintroduce Ariana Greenblatt's young Ahsoka Tano. In Ahsoka season 1, episode 5, the spirit of a dying Ahsoka enters the mystical realm known as the World Between Worlds. There, she meets the Force Ghost of her former Master, Anakin Skywalker, and travels through some of her memories of fighting in the Clone Wars. Ariana Greenblatt took over for Rosario Dawson in these scenes as the title character.

Star Wars Young Ahsoka

Greenblatt's portrayal of Ahsoka was interesting because she was playing a younger version of Ahsoka but with all of her adult memories. She captures the emotion of a young Ahsoka witnessing the tragedy of loss and the weight of commanding soldiers in battle for the first time while also showing the wisdom, knowledge, and experience of her older counterpart. Naturally, her success has led to intense speculation Greenblatt will return in some sort of live-action adaptation of Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

Ariana Greenblatt as young Ahsoka

Exploring Fresh Opportunities for Ahsoka's Story

While the idea of a live-action remake of Star Wars: The Clone Wars is certainly interesting and could have great potential, that era of Star Wars has been explored heavily already. There isn't much potential for fresh content during that particular era. It also doesn't allow Greenbelt all that much opportunity to make the character her own. After all, if she appears only in a remake of another wildly popular show, there will be certain expectations about how she plays Ahsoka throughout each of the seasons. She will be expected to follow a preset path. That isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it does limit Greenblatt to an extent.

Ariana Greenblatt as Padawan Ahsoka Tano alongside animated Padawan Ahsoka Tano.

There is a solution, however - one set up in Ahsoka episode 5's flashbacks. These included the Siege of Mandalore, the last battle of the Clone Wars, seen in Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 7. Ahsoka Tano herself led this mission, because Jedi Generals Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi had been recalled for the Battle of Coruscant. The Siege of Mandalore sets the precedent for Greenblatt to play a slightly older Ahsoka.

Ahsoka Siege of Mandalore Star Wars Clone Wars season 7

This makes complete sense, as Greenblatt is currently 16 years old. That places her at the perfect age to play Ahsoka anywhere between the ages of 14 and 18 - how old Ahsoka was from her introduction into the Star Wars universe, Order 66, and the early days of the Empire. Greenblatt's performance as a 17-year-old Ahsoka during the Siege of Mandalore is excellent. Everything from her stance to her facial expressions to her tone of voice is distinctly Ahsoka and captures all the pain and nuanced emotion that the character is experiencing.

Ariana Greenblatt as young Ahsoka in episode 5

Reintroducing A Fresh Interpretation of Ahsoka's Story

Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 7 ended after Order 66, setting up the Dark Times of the Empire's reign. Ahsoka's story during the Dark Times is still relatively unexplored. While there is some work set during that era, a lot of it has been neglected. There isn't much information on what Ahsoka was doing between Order 66 and joining the Rebellion or her early days in the Rebellion. This would be the perfect way to reintroduce Greenblatt into the Star Wars universe. It would allow her to make the character her own and bring a fresh interpretation to the role in a way that a remake wouldn't. Rather than having to follow a predetermined character arc, Greenblatt would be able to show how Ahsoka's character grew in those missing years.

Ariana Greenblatt as young Ahsoka Tano in Ahsoka with Hayden Christensen's Anakin Skywalker

However Disney chooses to reintroduce Greenblatt's Ahsoka, one thing the company should keep in mind is that live-action doesn't justify retconning. In the past, Star Wars has had a problem with retconning important details between pieces of media. Since Ahsoka has become such an integral character to the overarching mega-plot of the Star Wars universe - contributing to many things such as Anakin Skywalker's disillusionment with the Jedi and now Thrawn's return - rewriting important parts of her story would have implications far beyond what would be expected. Disney must remember this when writing new character content for Ahsoka Tano.

Young Ahsoka and her costume change for Ahsoka episode 5