It’s been revealed that Star Wars Rebels repeated a decision that Star Wars: The Clone Wars made, and it might’ve been the best thing for the show. Rebels premiered in 2014 and ran for 4 seasons, and it had many connections and overlaps with other Star Wars titles and characters. As the first visual media to come out of the Disney era of Star Wars, a lot was riding on the success of Rebels.

Rebels focused mainly on the six of the Ghost, with a particular interest in Ghost crew have made their live-action debuts - except for Kanan, who died in Rebels season 4. It’s clear that since Rebels ended in 2018, the characters have continued to be an important aspect of the larger Star Wars story. However, the main voice of Rebels could have been very different.

Pod Of Rebellion Revealed That Ezra Bridger Was The Last Of The Ghost Crew To Be Cast

Taylor Gray Was Not A Part Of The Cast When They First Met

Vanessa Marshall, Tiya Sircar, and Taylor Gray, who portrayed Hera Syndulla, Sabine Wren, and Ezra Bridger respectively, launched a new Rebels rewatch podcast along with Jon Lee Brody called Pod of Rebellion. In the first episode, Tiya Sircar and Vanessa Marshall were discussing their first-ever recording session for Rebels and revealed that the series' main character, Ezra Bridger, hadn’t been cast.

Taylor Gray confirmed as much, stating that he was brought on board for Rebels after doing Ezra’s digital shorts that were used as advertising before the Rebels season 1 premiere. At the point when the main cast of Rebels met and began recording, Sircar, Marshall and Freddie Prinze Jr. (Kanan Jarrus) were all present. Steve Blum, who voices Zeb Orrelios, was already cast but was at a convention in London, meaning he wasn’t present at the first recording session.

Matt Lanter Was The Last Of The Main Cast Added For The Clone Wars

The Voice Of Anakin Skywalker Was A Late Addition To The Clone Wars

At The Clone Wars 15th Anniversary at Star Wars Celebration 2023, Anakin Skywalker voice actor Matt Lanter revealed that he was a recast. Essentially, Lucasfilm had hired a different actor to voice the Jedi, but six months into the recording process, they began looking for a new actor, a role that Lanter eventually stepped into, and frankly excelled in. It’s unknown who the actor originally cast as Anakin was, or why he left the project, but it’s clear that Star Wars made the right decision as Lanter has become a beloved member of the Star Wars community.

Ahsoka Tano’s voice actor, Ashley Eckstein, revealed at the that it took her about six months to really find Ahsoka’s voice, a timeline that coincides with Lanter’s hiring. Matt Lanter’s performance as Anakin Skywalker added so much to the character’s story and gave him a vulnerability and softness that wasn’t seen in the Star Wars prequels. In many ways, The Clone Wars took Hayden Christensen’s performance from the Star Wars prequels and gave him more layers.

Hayden Christensen returned to Star Wars to reprise his role of Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader in Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka.

Hayden Christensen has even said that he is indebted to Lanter and The Clone Wars and watched the show in preparation for his return as the character in live-action. Lanter has returned multiple times to reprise his role as Anakin, most notably in Rebels and Tales of the Jedi. While the previous Anakin voice actor was likely a fine actor, there’s no doubt that Lucasfilm made the right decision by casting Matt Lanter.

Star Wars Seems Committed To Getting The Right Actors For Their Animated Projects

And That’s A Good Thing

It’s odd that Star Wars’ two most famous animated projects waited to cast their main characters, but ultimately it worked in their favor, as both Taylor Gray and Matt Lanter are amazing in their respective roles. It’s clear that patience was the right way to approach the casting process for these animated projects. Not only were Gray and Lanter the perfect people to play Jedi, but the entire casts of both The Clone Wars and Rebels are fantastic and have truly made these shows so beloved.

Casting in a franchise as massive and as beloved as Star Wars is difficult because fans will let their opinions be known if someone’s performance isn’t up to snuff.

Casting in a franchise as massive and as beloved as Star Wars is difficult because fans will let their opinions be known if someone’s performance isn’t up to snuff. However, it’s rare to hear complaints about the acting in The Clone Wars and Rebels. That is likely because of the care and time the showrunners took in casting. No matter their reasoning for recasting Anakin or waiting to hire Taylor Gray, Lucasfilm got it right when it came to The Clone Wars and Rebels.