Star Wars Celebration has given us our first look at Rory McCann as Baylan Skoll in Season 2 of Ahsoka. For those unfamiliar, McCann is taking over as Baylan following the death of Ray Stevenson.
While we have yet to see McCann in action, the Ahsoka panel at Star Wars Celebration gave us a first-look image that you can see below.
Stevenson, who was also known for his work in Thor, RRR, Punisher: War Zone, Rome, and more, passed away from a brief illness three months before the premiere of Ahsoka. For many, Stevenson’s portrayal of Baylan was the series’ high point so far.
Ahsoka series creator Dave Filoni shared that losing Ray was obviously one of the biggest challenges in developing Season 2, especially since he was “the most beautiful person on screen and off.”
Filoni and the team then revealed a bit more about what we can expect from Season 2, including that Hayden Christensen will return as Anakin Skywalker alongside Admiral Ackbar, Zeb, Chopper, and more.
In our review of Ahsoka’s first season, we said it “struggles in its early episodes as the series works to get viewers up to speed on characters and concepts introduced in Dave Filoni’s animated Star Wars shows. But once the actors and cosmic plots are really given time to shine, Ahsoka finds a wonderful mix of rich lore, humor, and big battles that make it feel like classic Star Wars while also forging a path to something new.”
For more, check out where Ahsoka ranks on our list of the best Star Wars Disney+ live-action TV shows and our explainer of the ending of Season 1 of Ahsoka.
Adam Bankhurst is a writer for IGN. You can follow him on X/Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on TikTok.
