To prepare for her role in Disney+'s Ahsoka, actress Rosario Dawson had to train vigorously, and the star revealed the details of the insane schedule she had to follow.
Ahsoka is currently seeing great success on Disney+ as the premiere was seen by around 14 million viewers in its first week on the streaming service.
A lot goes into making a character such as Ahsoka Tano come to life, however. In December 2022, Dawson revealed just how intensive the makeup process alone was, detailing that "it was a three-hour process" that sometimes had to begin "at 4:30 [or] 5 o'clock in the morning."
Rosario Dawson's Insane Ahsoka Training
In an interview with Rotten Tomatoes that took place during Star Wars Celebration back in April, Ahsoka star Rosario Dawson revealed the insane training schedule that she had to go through in order to prepare for the Star Wars show.
The actress revealed that she actually had to train for "two hours" every day, and on top of that, it had to be done "seven days a week." She also talked about how it was hard to "pivot" from one fight sequence to the next due to how "engrossed" she would be in a current scene:
"I have to say it was really interesting, because, you know, we were doing two hours of training a day, seven days a week. And then, you know, we start filming, and I'm having to do training while we're filming. And it was kind of insane to kind of have to forget a fight, a battle that you were so engrossed in, just to kind of pivot to the next one."
Dawson then explained how important "pivot[ing]" was since if she were to make one wrong move, it could result in a lightsaber being swung at "[her] face:"
"And you wanted to make sure you pivoted because if you thought you were supposed to be blocking when you're striking because the last fight had the strike and the block, that's your face, right? So you really got to get with the program. It kept you very present and it was very real."
The series lead also talked about how creator Dave Filoni ultimately realized that he may have "[written] a lot of battles" into the series, more than he originally realized:
"And it's so funny because as we kept doing it, Dave was like, 'Wow, maybe I did write a lot of battles.' I was like, 'Yeah, yeah you did sir. You did.'"
Dawson did talk about how "nice" it was to come into the character, however, and to be able to display all of Ahsoka's defining qualities from "her physicality" to "her expertise." She even gave a nod to her insane training, ultimately admitting how much it prepared her to "feel competent and confident:"
"But being that that's such a big part of the character, you know, her physicality, her prowess, her expertise, it was really nice to be able to assume that. And when I crossed that threshold of feeling competent and confident in it, it really meant everything. It changed the game for me, for sure."
How Will Rosario Dawson's Training Impact Ahsoka?
Fans have already been given a front-row seat to witness how Rosario Dawson's vigorous training paid off in the final cut of Ahsoka's first three episodes.
In the first two installments alone, the character took part in more than one lightsaber action sequence involving a lightsaber, and the trailers suggest that there will be more to come.
More specifically, one of the teasers set up a hard-hitting duel between Ahsoka and Baylan in a future episode that will take place on the planet Seatos. The same footage also spoiled that she will cross blades with Marrok once again, most likely on the same planet.
This planet is where Ahsoka and Sabine landed at the end of Episode 3, and it is where Baylan, Shin, and Morgan Elsbeth read the map that revealed Thrawn is in another galaxy.
Seeing as how that will more than likely take place in Episode 4, it is safe to assume that the latter half of the series will feature many more fight sequences of their own, especially since Dave Filoni realized that he had included "a lot of battles" in the show.
The first three episodes of Ahsoka are currently available to stream on Disney+, and new episodes debut every Tuesday at 9:00 p.m. ET.
