The recent debut of Star Wars: Ahsoka has garnered attention for its live-action portrayal of several characters from Star Wars Rebels. Notably, Sabine Wren (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) and Hera Syndulla (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) made their appearance alongside Rosario Dawson's Ahsoka in the two-episode premiere. However, fans have also identified other Rebels characters in the Disney+ show, including the beloved droid Chopper and Governor Ryder Azadi, portrayed by Clancy Brown in both animation and live-action. In addition, Vinny Thomas' character Jai-Kell was also featured, albeit briefly, as a Senator on Lothal. It is worth noting that Jai-Kell's initial introduction in the series differed from his current role.
A side-by-side comparison of Jai-Kell's appearance in Star Wars Rebels and Ahsoka can be viewed below:
Who is Jai-Kell in Star Wars Rebels?
Jai-Kell, a character in Star Wars Rebels, was initially portrayed by Dante Basco, known for his role in Avatar: The Last Airbender. Jai-Kell made his debut in the first season's Breaking Ranks episode, where he was undergoing training for the Empire at the Imperial Academy alongside Ezra Bridger, who was on an undercover mission. Ezra eventually aids Jai-Kell in his escape, and the latter goes into hiding. In the fourth season, Jai-Kell reappears in three additional episodes, revealing that he has been assisting the Rebels on Lothal. Although there were indications that Jai-Kell possessed Force sensitivity, he never received any formal training.
Dave Filoni on adapting the animated characters of Star Wars: Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels in live-action:
Dave Filoni, who has served as an executive producer on Star Wars: The Mandalorian and as the showrunner for Star Wars: Ahsoka, played a pivotal role in the creation of the animated Star Wars shows. In a recent interview with The Wrap, Filoni shared that while he is not primarily focused on bringing animated characters into live-action, he did hint at the possibility of more to come in Ahsoka.When asked how often he thinks about bringing his animated characters to live-action, Filoni said, "Very rarely."
He added, "I know people think it's the other way around, which is fascinating to me, but I think there's two ways to look at that, which is that, yes, they were animated characters, but to me, they're just characters. And now I'm over here working in live-action. I'm comfortable with those characters, I know them, I like them and I like to see them around."
Ahsoka Episode 3 is scheduled to release on Disney+ on Tuesday, August 29, 2023.
