J.J. Abrams Just Teased an Ahsoka Appearance in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

In less than a week, the saga ends with the release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, bringing the conclusion to the series of films that have lasted over four decades, spanning 11 separate movies. But the Star Wars franchise has expanded beyond the big screen, with Baby Yoda taking the world by storm on the Disney+ show The Mandalorian. And we’re also getting the return of Star Wars: The Clone Wars next year, which will likely feature the return of fan-favorite character Ahsoka Tano. But this might not be the only glimpse we’ll get of the character, if J.J. Abrams is to be trusted.

The director of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker was recently speaking with Japanese outlet Sora News while discussing his favorite character in the franchise and said it was Han Solo. He then asked the interviewer who their favorite character was, and they replied Ahsoka.

“Hmmm, Ahsoka, huh? Well then you’ll probably want to watch closely during The Rise of Skywalker,” said Abrams.

While it’s unlikely that Ahsoka will make a major debut in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, it’s possible that there will be some sort of Easter egg or reference to the character somewhere packed into its runtime.

Ever since Disney purchased Lucasfilm, they have made an effort to bridge the gap across the different corners of the extended universe. Characters like Grand Admiral Thrawn have appeared in Star Wars Rebels, Saw Gerrera from The Clone Wars made a live-action debut in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and The Mandalorian is already starting to flesh out the storylines previously seen in the animated shows.

The Mandalorian executive producer Jon Favreau previously teased more Extended Universe and Legends characters possibly jumping over to live-action in the near future during an interview with Entertainment Weekly.

“I don’t want to talk about anything that might be fun for people to discover,” Favreau explained. “We do have conversations. Part of what’s fun to see if we could merge the worlds of the original trilogy, the prequels, the sequels, [Star Wars:] The Clones Wars, and what’s been considered canon up to this point and what’s been considered part of Legends. I think this show offers an opportunity to bring in all those elements so no matter what your flavor of Star Wars ice cream you like there will be something to enjoy.”

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker premieres in theaters on Friday, December 20th.