Dave Filoni Explains Why Lars Mikkelsen Had To Reprise His Grand Admiral Thrawn Role in AHSOKA

Grand Admiral Thrawn has yet to make his big live-action debut in Star Wars: Ahsoka, but it’s coming! He was in the trailer for the series! This character has had an interesting journey in the Star Wars Universe since he was first introduced in Timothy Zahn’s 1991 book Heir to the Empire. He was then brought in by Filoni in the animated series, Star Wars: Rebels, where he was voiced by Lars Mikkelsen.

It was pretty cool to learn that Mikkelsen was also going to play the live-action version of the character in Ahsoka. It’s pretty perfectly cast as he not only had the voice, he’s got the look. There are two episodes left in the Ahsoka series and one of those episodes will introduce the character, and he’s going to play a major role in the future Star Wars projects that are set during the post-Return of the Jedi period. His story will lead up to the big movie that Dave Filoni is developing.

During a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight from Star Wars Celebration, Filoni revealed why bringing Mikkelsen back as the live-action Thrawn after he voiced the character in Rebels was the only casting decision he considered:

"It was a very big challenge to cast the voice. You know, how do you find a voice for a character that everybody who has read it, pictured it probably in a different, unique way?"

"Eventually, that led me to Lars, and we were all very happy with his performance in Rebels. [Jon Favreau said to me] 'It's going to be very hard to beat Lars.' Because Lars is in my head. The sound of his voice is kind of what I write to."

"[I thought] 'Now it's gotta be Lars' and Jon's like 'Okay.' He looks wonderful in blue. Not everybody does, so that's a factor and we worked on the eyes so...it's a unique thing to bring this character to life."

Filoni went on to praise Mikkelsen's "presence [and] his stature,” and added, “There are many factors that he's able to deliver on, and I couldn't be happier." When previously asked if Thrawn is the "big bad of this New Republic era," Filoni responded, saying: "Definitely, in my eyes." He went on to say:

"Thrawn became this very iconic villain, because he was different than anything we'd seen before. He wasn't another helmet-wearing, lightsaber-wielding bad guy." 

Thrawn is "a leader, a military strategist, a Moriarty archetype, someone that will out-think you, out-strategize you." These are all the reasons why fans love Thrawn and what makes him such an interesting and unique Star Wars villain. The “Heir to the Empire” is coming, and he is "a critical player in this time period."

Mikkelsen previously teased Thrawn’s ultimate agenda and how it may not become apparent until the end of the show:

“[Filoni’s] writing is very good. It’s very strong. And all the characters have their own drive, and you will probably not know what’s it all about until that very last scene and I like that. I like that writing, that takes its audience so seriously, that you can see for yourself that we drag it right to the reveal. What was the whole thing about?”

When talking about playing the live-action version of Thrawn, Mikkelsen assured fans that they will be getting the same villainous character that they’ve come to love over the years:

"It's hard to get into that without getting into the storytelling, you know, because of course some time has expired between rebels and where we get into the story here. So, and that time what happened in that time has put his mark on him, but in general, he's still the same bloke, mate. You see, you see he's so you're in for, you know, what you hope for?”

Mikkelsen also shared what makes Thrawn such an interesting villain, saying that his mind is what makes him a formidable foe for Ahsoka and all the other characters in the New Republic era. He explained:

"That bloke, he doesn't have the force. He's not a Jedi, he's not a superhero of any kind, but he has the brain. He has all of that in that regard. How does he stack up against characters like Ahsoka, Sabine, and all these other people we're going to see and possibly antagonize in the live-action series? I think, I mean, what I mean, his superpower is his mind, which is really and always like seven paces ahead of everybody. And I'm in that sense also ahead of you as an audience, I think. So that's what you expect."

Filoni also talked about Thrawn and explained what sets him apart from the iconic Star Wars villain Darth Vader, comparing him to the Sherlock Holmes character Moriarty:

"The genius of Thrawn is that he's not Darth Vader. He doesn't even try to be. He doesn't have the Force. But he's smart and he's calculating. He's like a Moriarty, he's going to outthink you and out chess move you, so those are the things that I really liked."

Filoni's big event plans will lead to the movie that will bring all of The Mandalorian-set Star Wars shows together. That movie will “close out” the interconnected stories that are being told in The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and Ahsoka. It’s also said to follow "the escalating war between the imperials and the fledging New Republic.”

Ahsoka is set after the fall of the Empire. Ahsoka “follows the former Jedi knight Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) as she investigates an emerging threat to a vulnerable galaxy.”