Warning! Spoilers ahead for episodes 1-4 of Ahsoka.
With the eagerly-awaited premiere of Ahsoka Episode 5 just around the corner, it’s safe to assume that Star Wars fans are in for some big surprises—one of which might include recasting Rosario Dawson as the eponymous hero, if only for a scene or two.

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What Is ‘Ahsoka’ About?
Dave Filoni’s Ahsoka show is gearing up for its mid-point celebration on Disney+, which will also be screened in select movie theaters across the U.S. and U.K. With last week’s “Part Four: Fallen Jedi” leaving fans on a literal cliffhanger after that shocking Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christen) reveal, it’s safe to assume that Part Five will pick up in the World Between Worlds, allowing us to further explore the mysterious plane within the Cosmic and Living Forces.

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Starring Rosario Dawson, who made her live-action debut as Ahsoka Tano in Season 2 of The Mandalorian, the series follows the former Jedi as she enlists the help of Star Wars Rebels’ Sabine Wren (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) and New Republic General Hera Syndulla (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) to help track down a familiar adversary: Grand Admiral Thrawn (Lars Mikkelsen).

After reemerging in the Unknown Regions nearly ten years after his defeat by Ezra Bridger (Eman Esfandi) in the Rebels finale, Thrawn is building a new army led by Morgan Elsbeth (Diana Lee Inosanto) and likely yet-unseen leaders of the Imperial Remnant. Helping the nefarious Nightsister are her Force-wielding henchmen Baylan Skoll (Ray Stevenson) and Shin Hati (Ivanna Sakhno), a master-apprentice duo that might not be full-on Darksiders, despite their appearances.
‘Ahsoka’ Episode 4 Recap, World Between Worlds Explained
Those who watched Rebels are already familiar with the World Between Worlds, introduced in the Season 4 episode, “A World Between Worlds.” Here, Ezra Bridger (Taylor Gray) bears witness to its strange dimension-bending powers after rescuing Ahsoka (Ashley Eckstein), who’s been trapped inside the portal ever since her confrontation with Darth Vader in the Season 2 episode, “Twilight of the Apprentice.”

As they make their escape, Ahsoka and Ezra come face-to-face with characters from all corners of the Star Wars universe, both dead and alive. They eventually get out and return to their correct place on the timeline, but the question of what the World Between Worlds truly is and its implications on the larger galaxy remains.
Rumors of what we can expect to see in Ahsoka, particularly regarding the World Between Worlds, have run rampant since the first trailer was released earlier this year. Many theorized that we would see Star Wars: The Clone Wars flashbacks and even an alternate reality where Anakin defeated Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) on the lava planet of Mustafar in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005).

According to new reports, the latter rumor has allegedly been shut down, but it seems almost imminent that Ahsoka will feature some flashbacks to the Clone Wars in Episode 5. There’s plenty of evidence to back up these claims, with Temuera Morrison, who played Jango Fett and the entire clone army in the Prequels, reportedly set to play fan-favorite character Captain Rex in the show.
Other reports claim that Hayden Christensen was spotted donning Clone Wars-era armor on the Ahsoka set, which heavily alludes to some live-action recreations of beloved scenes. But if the series plans to travel back in time, this means we’ll see a very different, younger Ahsoka who almost certainly won’t be played by Rosario Dawson.

Rosario Dawson’s ‘Ahsoka’ Replacement Reportedly Cast
Star Wars—for better or worse—hasn’t shied away from using de-aging technology in the past, from CGI-hybrid Mark Hamill’s cameos in The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett to Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002) era Obi-Wan and Anakin in the Disney+ Obi-Wan Kenobi miniseries.
But according to a new report from reliable franchise insider MakingStarWars, Ahsoka will recast the character for flashback sequences in the upcoming episode instead. While early rumors stated that House of the Dragon star Savannah Steyn would portray Padawan Ahsoka, this seems to have officially been disproven if these claims are anything to go by.

A now-deleted post from Redditor EconomicsLegal6989 made the rounds across the Star Wars community at the tail end of last week, which stated that they knew who was playing the part of young Ahsoka in the spinoff show. While the user danced around the actress’s name, they shared that the actress had recently featured in a billion-dollar movie.
Speculation led many to believe that Barbie (2023) breakout star Ariana Greenblatt, who also played a young Gamora (Zoe Saldana) in Avengers: Infinity War (2017), would take over the titular role for the fifth episode of Ahsoka. Recently, MakingStarWars took to his YouTube show to say he felt comfortable backing these rumors, adding, “It’s already out there, and we can just double down on it.”

If this is true, Greenblatt will have starred in three extremely high-profile projects, with Barbie and Infinity War having grossed over $1 billion at the box office. Adding Ahsoka to her resume is an awe-inspiring feat, considering she’s just 16 years old.
It’ll be interesting to see who will ultimatley play a hypothetical Clone Wars-era Ahsoka—if there really are flashback sequences in the upcoming episode—and how many scenes she’ll have in total. While it’s difficult to predict who and what exactly we’ll see in the World Between Worlds, one thing’s for sure: Episode 5 has the power to change Star Wars canon forever.
What do you think of this Ariana Greenblat casting rumor? Do you think she’s a fitting choice for young Ahsoka? Let us know in the comments below.