Ahsoka's Grand Admiral Thrawn Twist Just Broke Star Wars' #1 Rule

By Savannah Sanders Updated:
Thrawn Ahsoka Sabine

Star Wars took "once a rebel, always a rebel" literally with Ahsoka on Disney+.

Ever since Rosario Dawson brought Ahsoka Tano to live-action in The Mandalorian, she's been on the hunt for Grand Admiral Thrawn

Throughout her solo series' two-episode premiere, Star Wars fans finally learned where Thrawn - and likely Ezra Bridger - have been since the Star Wars Rebels finale, and it changed everything audiences have known since A New Hope.

Thrawn's Location Shatters Original Star Wars Rule

Warning - this article contains spoilers for the first two episodes of Ahsoka.

The MacGuffin for both episodes of Ahsoka is a star map containing the shocking location of Grand Admiral Thrawn. 

For reference, in Star Wars Rebels, Ezra relied on his Force connection with Purrgil (whale-like creatures who can travel through hyperspace) to destroy Thrawn's fleet and whisk them both to an unknown location at hyperspeed.

Star Wars Rebels finale featuring Ezra and Thrawn
Disney+

In the years following 2018's Rebels finale, their whereabouts have remained a mystery, but many expected the two to be in the Unknown Regions. 

Star map from Star Wars: Ahsoka
Disney+

However, when Morgan Elsbeth opens the star map, it shows that Thrawn was taken to the legendary Peridea, which is encircled by runes resembling Purrgil and located in a completely separate galaxy. 

Star Wars Ahsoka star map
Disney+

This is huge because the first information audiences ever received about Star Wars in 1977 was that this story takes place in the past and in a specific, singular galaxy far, far away.

It is also important to note that this is the first time in Star Wars canon that a different galaxy has been mentioned and will be visited on-screen.

Star Wars card of
Disney+

Now, Star Wars is breaking its own original rule by confirming that there's actually more than one. 

Unlearn What You Have Learned About Star Wars

Apparently, Dave Filoni didn't just come to play - he came to change the game.

Introducing a whole other galaxy - and how to get there - could change Star Wars as audiences know it.

Granted, huge swings are nothing new to Filoni given his introduction of Mortis in The Clone Wars and the World Between Worlds in Rebels

However, the reveal of a new galaxy looks to be his biggest swing yet; and one that will hopefully connect to his prior groundbreaking additions to Star Wars lore. 

No doubt it will be intriguing to see how fans respond to another galaxy far, far away, especially since Star Wars has long established its own parameters. But the big question is just what story is Filoni looking to tell and how will this affect upcoming Star Wars stories. 

In addition to Ahsoka and other Star Wars projects in the Lucasfilm pipeline, it's worth noting that Filoni is set to helm a Mando-Verse crossover movie

Given the bombshell he dropped in Ahsoka's premiere, it seems he intends for this film to be far more than just Baby Yoda on the big screen. 

Hopefully, his reasons for revealing a new galaxy and what he has planned will become clearer as Ahsoka unfolds. 

New episodes of Ahsoka debut on Tuesdays on Disney+.

- In This Article: Ahsoka
Release Date
August 22, 2023
Platform
Actors
Mary Elizabeth Winstead
Natasha Liu Bordizzo
- About The Author: Savannah Sanders
Savannah Sanders joined The Direct as a writer in 2020. In addition to writing for The Direct's Star Wars, Marvel, and DC teams, Savannah specializes in the relationship between Disney's blockbuster franchises and the Disney Parks.