Natasha Liu Bordizzo, who plays Sabine Wren in the upcoming Disney+ Ahsoka series, has revealed in a new interview with SFX Magazine why she chose to avoid copying the animated version of her character for the live-action show. The interview was conducted before the recent strikes.
The actress first made sure to clarify that she “loved Tiya Sircar’s Sabine,” but she never “[wanted] to try to copy someone:”
“I loved Tiya Sircar’s Sabine!… I loved the energy, the sarcasm, and playfulness that really made Sabine Sabine, but obviously, it’s a delicate balance because I never want to try to copy someone. I want to be inspired by the energy they put into the character and then make the role my own.”
Bordizzo also shared how she “watched everything” before filming began, including the animated series Star Wars Rebels, where Sabine is first introduced:
“And of course, I watched everything… including the original films, The Mandalorian and, of course, ‘Rebels.’ But I didn’t watch anything after we started filming because otherwise, it gets too much. You want to have space, take all the experiences and memories and inspirations from everything you’ve watched, and then let the live action you’re creating find its own truth, its own journey.”
The actress pivoted to give praise to Ahsoka’s showrunner, Dave Filoni, claiming that “he really just trusted us:”
“Just to have the creator around every day is a luxury… He’s like this bottomless pit of knowledge and the guardian of the story and the characters. Also, he really just trusted us – while we’d go to him for guidance, he’d also say, You are Sabine, so whatever you instinctually feel is right is right.”
Ahsoka arrives on Disney+ with a two episode premiere on August 23rd.