A Live-Action Transition

Host Anthony Carboni welcomes two actors to the Star Wars Celebration LIVE! stage who are making the leap from animation to live-action [00:21]. The crowd roars as Ray Stevenson (Baylan Skoll) and Lars Mikkelsen (Grand Admiral Thrawn) from the upcoming Ahsoka series take their seats. After some banter about Mikkelsen’s iconic character, Carboni remarks, “Well, well, well, the heir to the Empire, is it?” to which Mikkelsen simply replies, “I can’t deny that, yeah” [01:22].

Wielding the Lightsaber

Carboni asks Stevenson about his journey back to Star Wars, having previously voiced the Mandalorian Gar Saxon in The Clone Wars [01:32]. Stevenson admits he had no idea what to expect when he got the secretive call for this new project, assuming they wanted him to play another “English guy bad guy” [01:52]. Instead, creator Dave Filoni surprised him with the role of Baylan Skoll.

Stevenson lights up when discussing his action scenes, noting he and Rosario Dawson (Ahsoka) “go at it quite strong a couple of good times in the series” [02:45]. He emphasizes that getting to wield a lightsaber is “just the best feeling in the world.” However, he confesses that during his very first camera test, he couldn’t help himself and made the lightsaber noise out loud. “The noise! Everybody does! I’m sorry!” he laughs [03:04].

Our Favorite Sneaky Blue Son

Carboni turns to Mikkelsen, referring to Thrawn as “our favorite sneaky blue son,” and asks about the transition into live-action after voicing the character on Star Wars Rebels [03:47]. Mikkelsen recalls hitting it off with Filoni over Skype years ago, noting they both loved exploring the character’s creativity and intelligence. “There’s so many layers to that villainous character,” Mikkelsen explains, describing Thrawn in a “Sherlockian way” and joking, “he’s so much smarter than me” [05:01]. Mikkelsen admits that they had to think carefully about how to translate the role to live-action, striving to adapt the core of the character without simply copying the animated performance [05:20].

When asked if he ever thought a single shot of the back of his head in a trailer would cause such a massive reaction, Mikkelsen shakes his head. “No, I had no idea,” he says. “I live in Denmark, it’s a very small country… in many ways this is mind-blowing for me” [05:56].

The Passion on Set

The two actors discuss the incredible atmosphere on the set of Ahsoka. Stevenson highlights the unmatched passion of everyone involved, noting that every department deeply cared about the final product, completely blurring the lines of division on set [07:09]. Mikkelsen agrees, pointing out the artistry at every level, from prop building to costume design. Stevenson specifically praises his costume, noting that the gray, almost tweedy look adds a layer of mystery and nobility to Baylan Skoll, leaving the audience guessing, “Is he a bad guy? Is he a good guy?” [08:51].

Teasing Inspirations

Before concluding, Carboni asks the actors to carefully name some character inspirations for their roles without giving anything away [09:07]. Stevenson chooses “some Arthurian knight, some knight, some sort of legend, some quest that may be involved,” though he notes that Arthurian knights “weren’t all good” [09:34]. Mikkelsen sticks to his earlier comparison, stating simply, “Someone along the lines of Sherlock” [10:00].