'Ahsoka' Actress Speaks Out After Quitting 'Star Wars' Franchise

The Star Wars universe has lost one of its own thanks to a dispute with The Walt Disney Company.

When Ahsoka launched on Disney+ in August 2023, it served as far more than a single character’s continuation—it became a vital connector bridging decades of Star Wars lore. Created by Dave Filoni, the series links The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels, and the post-original trilogy timeline, tying directly into The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and Skeleton Crew.

Rosario Dawson stars as Ahsoka Tano, searching for Ezra Bridger (Eman Esfandi) while facing Grand Admiral Thrawn’s return, with Lars Mikkelsen reprising his role. The ensemble includes Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Ivanna Sakhno, the late Ray Stevenson, and Diana Lee Inosanto.

Season 1 ended with Ahsoka and Sabine stranded on Peridea while Ezra escaped. With Season 2 confirmed alongside The Mandalorian and Grogu film for May 2026, the series’ future trajectory became crucial. Recent reporting suggests Filoni plans to craft a satisfying conclusion in case of cancellation, like how The Acolyte was unceremoniously cut by Lucasfilm. “According to Daniel Richtman, the plan now is to make sure the series has a satisfying ending in case it’s canceled and doesn’t return for a third season.”

The production faced a major setback losing Ray Stevenson, who passed away at 58. THR reported, “Scottish actor Rory McCann, best known for playing the burly brute The Hound on HBO’s Game of Thrones, will replace late actor Ray Stevenson for a second season of Star Wars show Ahsoka, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.” McCann’s casting was unveiled at Star Wars Celebration in Tokyo.

Now the Mando-Verse faces another hurdle as an actress has officially departed due to a Disney dispute.

Ahsoka Actress Exits Star Wars

Claudia Black, who portrayed Nightsister Grandmother Klothow in Season 1, announced during a recent interview that she won’t return for Season 2. Black’s exit represents another potential significant casting change as the series progresses.

The departure stemmed from what Black described as a fundamental financial breakdown. While initially secured for the continuation, production realities made her participation impossible. With filming relocating to London, the compensation failed to accommodate her circumstances as a single parent maintaining a Los Angeles household.

“They picked up season two,” Black told Bleeding Cool, “picked me up with it, and then Disney, which is structuring things differently these days, could not pay me what I needed to be paid as a single mother to keep all my responsibilities going at home in Los Angeles, because they were filming in London.”

Black’s character served on the Nightsister governing council from Peridea, an extragalactic realm. Throughout Season 1, she and fellow Nightsisters—including Morgan Elsbeth (Diana Lee Inosanto)—aided Grand Admiral Thrawn (Lars Mikkelsen) in blocking the heroes’ progress. Despite the circumstances, Black spoke appreciatively about the production’s atmosphere and The Volume’s technological innovations. She also shared how her Clone Wars-fan son deduced her involvement from hints despite contractual secrecy restrictions.

“He was like, ‘Are you talking about the Nightsisters? What’s the show?’ He heard one little thing, and he was like, ‘I know exactly who she’s talking about,’ so it was fun to go into and do something relatable with him. But, very sad to not be able to continue that at the end of the day.”

Now, more information has come to light as Claudia Black has spoken out to The Hollywood Reporter about her decision to quit the Star Wars franchise.

“When I did the first season, people assumed that I’m making hundreds of thousands of dollars. It could not be further from the truth on a role like this,” Black told the outlet. “[My pay was] closer to what I was earning when I was 19 or in my early 20s.”

“I have heard people who work in corporations, not necessarily Disney, but all these bigger corporations, they have spoken in rooms about how lucky the actors should be to be part of a successful franchise, and that they will take it for the screen credit and they will take it for a bit of money, and then hopefully that will bring them further work, but that they should be lucky,” she expanded. “The issue I have is when that comes to women, other people who were able to say yes to this job didn’t have the same responsibilities, and that thinking is not designed around how much invisible work women do in a household.”

Following her initial comments, Black expanded on why she believes change is necessary.

“I have a great community, I have an amazing life,” Black explained. “It’s just something needs to change and this needs to be discussed, and I knew the risks and I think there’s more power in me stepping back, because I’m not desperate and there’s more power in me talking about it even though there’s so little job security and there’s so little psychological safety in these spaces when women do speak up.”

Black explained, “It’s a difficult situation, and the industry is fragile because if you push too hard, nothing gets made,” while acknowledging “the decision that Disney made” was “absolutely not personal” since negotiators “might not even know my screen credits, might not even know who I am.”

After three decades in the business, she was overwhelmed by industry support, noting “I don’t know anyone in this business who has job security” and emphasizing the importance of discussing “disparity and the way things are run, and the way women are treated,” not because she was “treated poorly in this instance with Ahsoka” but because “we’re not thought about, we’re not factored in” regarding “invisible work that women do in a household.”

Black also sent Ahsoka creator Dave Filoni an email explaining, “if I could have, I would have, and that I did season one on a massive pay cut, precisely because many people want to be part of the Star Wars universe,” but “it took me to burnout, and it actually did really cost me.” She stresses her comments aren’t “personal” but about raising “awareness to grow around the diversity of people in this business,” adding, “If they want to have the aura of an older woman who has all this lived experience, but they don’t wanna help actually support her, then there’s a problem.”

Klothow will likely be recast since the Nightsisters remain integral to Thrawn’s return storyline. No replacement has been confirmed yet, with the new season scheduled for 2026 on Disney+.

Ahsoka’s Evolution

According to Rosario Dawson, Season 2 will showcase Ahsoka’s emotional transformation following her World Between Worlds encounter with Anakin Skywalker. Speaking at Comic-Con Scotland, Dawson revealed her character will display a markedly different temperament.

“She had a more of a strong gravitas at the beginning, and she was a little bit more unflappable,” Dawson said. “And I’m liking that she’s relaxing, she’s kind of getting back into her joy.”

Dawson explained how the Anakin scenes facilitated this shift: “I think those moments with Hayden Christensen and Anakin were so important for her to heal something so she could be more present. And that’s what I’m really enjoying. I think we get to explore that a lot more in the second season.”

She emphasized the collaborative nature of this arc: “I’m really glad that we get to add more joy into her life and see her relax a little bit more and work in community a little bit more than she has.”

For a character long defined by solitude and restraint—walking a complex path from disillusioned Jedi to independent operative—this represents a significant tonal shift. After years in the shadows, Ahsoka appears ready to embrace a more integrated galactic existence.

How do you feel about the recent Ahsoka developments? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!