The upcoming Star Wars series Ahsoka on Disney Plus features several characters making their debut in live-action. Some will even be played by the same actors who voiced them in animated form. But it seems there's one who has no wish to return, and he has good reasons for it.
Ahsoka already has a connection to Star Wars Rebels, with even the co-creator of both series Dave Filoni confirming it. But while Filoni has said Ahsoka does continue the story of Rebels, some aspects of the latter Star Wars series won't make the jump to the front of a camera. Because some characters, unfortunately, didn't survive the events of Rebels, that can be expected. But there are other reasons for one actor in particular.
In a recent appearance on Kristian Harloff's The Big Thing podcast, Freddie Prinze Jr. (Who played Jedi Knight Kanan Jarrus in Star Wars Rebels) spoke about how he's been effectively forced to return to the character several times, with one instance involving being asked to voice a younger version of Kanan in season 1 of The Bad Batch. "I was asked to, yeah," he said of the experience. "I didn't necessarily want to. I feel like every time you hear Kanan’s voice since Rebels ended, it really kind of dilutes his impact." It's not difficult to see his perspective here, particularly given Kanan's powerful sacrifice marking his final appearance in Star Wars Rebels.
But that wasn't the only time he was asked to return, and he may have finally drawn a line. Some fans will remember hearing Prinze as Kanan speaking to Rey through the Force alongside other fallen Jedi during the climax of the arguably failed sequel Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. The actor didn't mince words on that topic. "Yeah, I didn't want to do that either," he answered bluntly when asked about it. "I was asked as a favor and I feel like all my — all their favors are used up now." To drive the point home, he ended the topic by shutting down the possibility of showing up in Ahsoka and ever playing Kanan again. "No Ahsoka, I'm done with Kanan. I'm too old for that stuff."
Prinze has a point. Star Wars has had a problem rehashing old plot points and bringing back characters lately rather than focusing on new stories. It's gotten to the point where even Star Wars creator George Lucas thought Spaceballs was a better adventure movie than The Force Awakens. Kanan made a heroic and selfless sacrifice that completed his character arc in Star Wars Rebels, and bringing him back lessens the impact of that moment. What's at stake for a character putting their life on the line if they can return as a Force ghost?
If Prinze putting his foot down is how his character maintains his integrity, then it's probably for the best. Maybe the actor will return to Star Wars one day. But, hopefully, only as a new character. Prinze has got the chops for it, and Kanan deserves to be laid to rest.
Ahsoka is set to premiere on Disney Plus in August 2023.
Source: Kristian Harloff/YouTube