At Star Wars Celebration, Dave Filoni confirmed that Game of Thrones star Rory McCann will take over from the late Ray Stevenson as Baylan Skoll in Ahsoka season 2.
GamesRadar+ is in attendance at the convention, and the Ahsoka panel dropped reveal after reveal. This one had a more sombre tone, as Filoni first took the time to pay tribute to Stevenson, who died in 2023.
"It was particularly a big challenge because of losing Ray," Filoni said of season 2, going on to say that "Ray was the most beautiful person on screen and off."
"It was a challenge for me to even consider continuing for a while," he said. "But I have a great support group with Jon [Favreau] and Rosario [Dawson]. And I found a way, and I had Ray in my head. And [I'm] grateful for all those conversations with him about Baylan, so I understood what to do. It just took a while to get there. But I'm very confident now that Ray would be happy with the direction of the character that we've chosen."
A first look at McCann as Skoll was also unveiled to the audience.
During the Ahsoka panel, Dave Filoni emotionally paid tribute to the late Ray Stevenson - and confirmed Rory McCann will play Baylan Skoll in season 2 pic.twitter.com/VO2gLZYDKcApril 19, 2025
Ahsoka was released on Disney Plus in 2023 and confirmed for a season 2 in January 2024.
The panel also revealed that Hayden Christensen's Anakin Skywalker will return, Admiral Ackbar will feature, and there was even a first look (of sorts).
Next up for Star Wars is Andor season 2, which arrives in a triple episode premiere on Disney Plus this April 22 in the US and April 23 in the UK.
In the meantime, check out our guide to all the upcoming Star Wars movies and shows, or see our roundup of everything announced and what to expect at Star Wars Celebration 2025 through the link.
