Whenever we return to Ahsoka, and its mysterious antagonist Baylan Skoll, we’ll be doing so in the sad recognition of the passing of the late, great Ray Stevenson, who brought the character to such intriguing life in season one. Now, Skoll will be played by Game of Thrones‘ Rory McCann, who has opened up about the responsibility–and the fight training–that comes with taking on such a legacy.
McCann was only officially confirmed as taking on the mantle of the dark Jedi for season 2 at Star Wars Celebration Japan last month, following reports about the decision to recast the character rather than write Skoll out of Ahsoka entirely. “I think it’s the right decision to carry on his storyline, not just cut it off,” McCann told Comicbook.com about the decision, one of the first times he’s spoke out about joining the galaxy far, far away. “We’ve done it before with other things. I hope the fans embrace it, and I’ll do my best. I’m just starting now, so I’m just trying to be in the right zone for doing it. It’s pretty bloody exciting.”
McCann’s right–although the circumstances around Skoll’s recasting are understandably forced by tragedy, Star Wars fans have gotten used to accepting characters being recast over the course of the long Skywalker saga (and arguably should continue to get even more comfortable with, if the alternative is as either McCann says, not carrying on a storyline, or whatever the whole digital Luke Skywalker homunculus situation The Book of Boba Fett and The Mandalorian have going on).
Aside from having to take on another actor’s character, McCann’s also getting to grips with something he’s already plenty familiar with thanks to his time in Westeros: the sword training. “I mean, I remember being a kid with my dad, going to the first one probably in the late ’70s and ’80s,” he added. “Now I’m training with a lightsaber at night, so it’s pretty exciting.”
Turns out he’s also right about another thing–training with actual swords is a transferable skill in the galaxy far, far away. “Thrones has really helped with that. Same kind of moves, same blocking… doesn’t have the same sexy sound though, oh, my god,” McCann joked. “Lightsabers are lighter, but having said that, the Thrones swords were stunt swords and you’ve got to pretend that they’re three times heavier than they are. But it’s all pretend, really. It’s all very exciting.”
Ahsoka is expected to return to Dinsey+ some time in 2026.
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