Baby Yoda’s story – and his name! – were finally revealed on The Mandalorian, which raises a new question: who will train Grogu? Thanks to a few oblique clues in the most recent episode and the presence of the surviving Jedi Ahsoka Tano, we have at least one theory: Ezra Bridger, a powerful Jedi friend of Ahsoka from the animation. Star Wars Rebels TV show. It’s far from confirmed, but we think there are a few clues that suggest how Ezra could make a major comeback and help Grogu learn to use the Force.
The first indirect clue that Ezra could play in The Mandalorian comes when Ahsoka defeats the episode’s villain, Imperial loyalist Morgan Elsbeth, in a one-on-one battle. She asks to know the location of Elsbeth’s “master” – Grand Admiral Thrawn, an Imperial villain best known for being one of the main antagonists of Star Wars Rebels. When he was last seen onscreen, he and Ezra were both on an Imperial ship that was shot into deep space. Ahsoka’s mention of Thrawn suggests that the ship survived its voyage, and if it did, Ezra could very well be alive somewhere.
Later in the episode, when Ahsoka refuses to train Grogu, she offers some hope, telling Din Djarin to take Grogu to Tython’s ancient planet. There, she explains, Grogu can contact the Force, sending some sort of beacon or call for help that could be heard by all the Jedi who are there and able to hear his call – though , Ahsoka reminds him, not many Jedi are gone. In fact, at this point in the Star Wars timeline, there are hardly any living Jedi known, as the Purge of the Empire either killed all of the Jedi or drove them underground. The most notable are Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa, as well as Ahsoka herself, neither of whom are candidates to become Grogu’s teacher.
There are, presumably, other Jedi who escaped the Purge and survived the rebellion, but Ahsoka’s presence and the reference to Thrawn make many viewers wonder if Ezra could end up being the Jedi who hears Grogu’s call. After all, he would make a very good choice, narratively speaking. He is a known character from Rebels series, but he’s not an iconic character in the main films, and he would be about a good age to be a teacher (the Rebels The sequel reveals that he, like Luke and Leia, was born in the year Anakin Skywalker fell, placing him around thirty for The Mandalorian). More importantly, he’s sort of a blank narrative slate for the future: he’s not referenced in back-to-back trilogy movies, and he’s not even one of the Jedi voices that appear in Rey in. The Rise of Skywalker, which means his future is completely unknown. Who better to join the cast and train Grogu than a popular character with a mysterious storyline?
Any last clue that Ezra may be on his way? Back in September, The Haunting of Bly Manor star Rahul Kohli tweeted jokingly that seemed to suggest he was hoping to play a live Ezra. “I walked into this force-sensitive orphan from Lothal trained by Kanan Jarrus. For no particular reason,” he tweeted. He later clarified to Reverse that no, he was not Actually playing Ezra – but industry rumors were already swirling that the show was looking to play the character. “I was lagging behind. I heard rumors that there was a casting call for a live Ezra who was looking for Asian actors in their late twenties, early thirties.” , he explained. Perhaps these rumors will soon materialize!
