Natasha Liu Bordizzo Easily Related To Sabine's Struggles In Ahsoka
The following article contains spoilers for "Ahsoka."
Getting to see a live-action version of the "Star Wars Rebels" character Sabine Wren was pretty cool. Whatever your feelings about the series, Natasha Liu Bordizzo absolutely captured the animated character from "Rebels" voiced by Tiya Sircar. In the Disney+ live-action "Ahsoka," we learned that Sabine had begun training as a Jedi with Ahsoka (Rosario Dawson) before the events of the series. However, it wasn't working out and they'd parted ways. As the show begins, Ahsoka needs Sabine's help, and their training starts up again. Sabine is still struggling with frustration about her powers, and where she fits in the universe now. Add in the fact that she's missing her friend Ezra (Eman Esfandi) who is missing along with Grand Admiral Thrawn (Lars Mikkelsen) and you have a recipe for some personality clashes.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, Bordizzo said that she related her character's struggles, from finding her place as an adult and her relationship with Ahsoka and with the Force. She also spoke about where she'd like to see her character go in the future.
' ... I reminded [Ahsoka] so much of her master'
Sabine isn't an easy character. She's rebellious, determined, and easily frustrated with what she cannot do yet. Sound familiar? It does to Bordizzo. She said, "Part of the reason Ahsoka originally had issues trusting Sabine was because I reminded her so much of her master in some ways, in terms of the internal struggle I was going through." It makes sense, particularly after getting to see so much of a younger Anakin (voiced by Matt Lanter) in "Star Wars: The Clone Wars." It gave us an idea of what could have been if he hadn't fallen to the dark side. Sabine, like Anakin, feels likely to be tempted, but with those around her having dealt with what Anakin has become, they are unlikely to let her fall as well. Bordizzo said that she understands what Sabine is going through:
"We're the same age, actually, Sabine and I. I was 28 when we shot it, and everything I was going through in life at that age, I wanted to channel it. She wasn't a teenager anymore, but she's still someone who needs guidance. Where I was at in life was very parallel to her. I was just at a big crossroads. Your late 20s can be kind of rough. You're getting past a lot of stuff that used to interest you and moving into a new chapter."
That is especially true if you have Force powers. You get frustrated and you have the power to do something about it? That's tempting when you're going through what Sabine is.
'I can relate to that'
One of the things about sci-fi stories is that, despite things like the Force, spaceships, and lightsabers, they allow us to work through real-life issues and maybe even live out the fantasy of being able to change things for the better ... or worse. Bordizzo found Sabine's attempt to center herself and focus on her powers to be not that different from what she was going through in her own life. She said:
"The Force, and Sabine trying to achieve use of the Force, was such a metaphor for me of trying to achieve that groundedness in real life. It just made me laugh. A lot of the time I would read the episodes and be like, 'I can relate to that.' Obviously, I'm not trying to achieve the Force, but it's all related."
That said, we didn't get as much time with Sabine as many fans would have liked. We do have the Dave Filoni-directed film that is set to tie all the Disney+ shows together, and there is always the possibility of "Ahsoka" season 2. Bordizzo said that she's hoping to see Sabine let some of her guard down as things move forward. She explained, "It didn't have enough time to evolve that much in season one because you're learning about these characters, they're also going through crazy upheaval and war and problems. So we'll see where that goes."
"Ahsoka" is currently streaming on Disney+.