Head 'Star Wars Resistance' Writer States We Almost Got Asajj Ventress Vs Kylo Ren
Star Wars Resistance was one of the first shows to be set during the New Republic era of Star Wars. Being set roughly 34 BBY, it is the only show that exists around the sequel trilogy era. The only other show to be set anywhere near this time is The Mandalorian, which takes place just a few years after Episode VI.
Resistance followed a pilot named Kazuda Xiono, who began spying on the First Order for the Resistance. Naturally, thanks to its proximity in time to the sequel trilogy, the show is more connected to it than the original trilogy or the prequel trilogy. However, new information has proved that it might have originally had a major connection to The Clone Wars.
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In a recent interview on the podcast Friends of the Force, Star Wars Resistance head writer/executive producer Brandon Auman gave some new details about early versions of some of the characters in the show. It was in this interview that he revealed Asajj Ventress was originally meant to appear in the show in place of another character, Mika Grey. Not only was Ventress originally going to take Grey’s place, but she was also meant to fight Kylo Ren in the series. In the interview, he said,
“We had. . . Mika Grey, who, originally, early on, was actually Asajj Ventress in the storyline. That was going to be an older version of Asajj Ventress. And that was [Dave] Filoni’s idea. And we were even gonna have a scene where. . . Asajj Ventress takes on Kylo Ren. That was something that we had discussed very early on."
Having Asajj in Resistance would have been amazing. It would also have been interesting to see her battle, Kylo Ren. That could have opened so many story possibilities for both characters, and since Ventress didn’t make an appearance in the last seasons of The Clone Wars (even though the final season was released after Resistance), it would have been an interesting continuation of her story.
Obviously, this is not how the series played out. Dave Filoni changed his mind about putting Ventress in the show. He knew that the fans would see Ventress the focal point of the show, and he didn’t want her to steal the spotlight from other characters. Auman said he was initially heartbroken at Filoni’s decision, but he eventually came to see his point. Despite the immensely positive feedback from fans that the reveal would certainly get, Auman knew that wasn’t the story that needed to be told. There could undoubtedly have been some continuity issues with Ventress appearing in the show, too. Despite all this, seeing Ventress and Kylo Ren in a huge fight would almost have been worth derailing the show.
At the end of the day, it is probably better that they went the route they did with Star Wars Resistance. The show may have gotten a mixed response from fans, but it was a critical success. Not to mention the fact that it won an Emmy, so Auman’s story hit a lot of the right notes. As for Ventress’ fate, her last appearance onscreen was in season 5 of The Clone Wars series. She later appeared in the novel Dark Disciple (Spoilers Ahead) where she aids rogue Jedi Quinlan Vos. The two try to find and kill Count Dooku and inevitably fall in love. However, Vos is captured and turned to the Dark Side by Dooku. Ventress is able to bring him back to the Light Side, but at the cost of her own life. It would appear that she is killed rather unceremoniously offscreen. While that does not necessarily mean she will not be seen in another Star Wars series, it does certainly make it difficult. It is an abrupt end for a fan favorite character, but perhaps she will appear in one form or another in a future show.
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Source(s): CBR