Spotlight panel with Hayden Christensen and Rosario Dawson who discuss their long friendship, working together on Ahsoka, Carrie Fisher and more.
#haydenchristensen #rosariodawson #awesomecon #starwars #starwarsahsoka #ahsoka #ahsokatano #anakinskywalker #anakin #darthvader
Rosario Dawson and haen [Applause] [Applause] ch [Applause] [Applause] this is amazing so many y tur the heat up [Applause] love you love you me this is kind of reminding me when um Kevin Smith came out late before a panel years ago and I came out and I started singing to the audience we’ve come a long way and now you guys are singing for us this is kind
Cool she can s for us too I I would love that she’s back dancing for real she you were having the best time I the back there it was a lot like I like it you guys have known each other for a while can you tell that
Story when you guys met it’s 16 how old were you yeah we were we were teenagers babies yeah um yeah we we we first met uh in theater school um when we were kids really uh and and I remember it uh really well because uh he’ already done the movie kids um
And I was I went to this this acting class and you were there and I was so Star Struck but you were so sweet and nice and and and just so kind and I remember there was like a group of kids going out for lunch one day and you
Invited me to come along and I I really appreciate that U but yeah so we’ve known each other for a while um and then we did uh film shattered glass Together can we go back I didn’t say to your brother for like a half a second that did not come up with my research it was a half a second it really was how was team no kidding how fun was it been to shoot your scenes together incredible also the
The energy onet like people were crying you know this everyone on a Star Wars set is a True Believer fan and that’s one of the things that I loved even being there on Mandalorian and on Boba Fett and just talking to everyone in the crew like the grips hair
Makeup like sound everyone you know they’re like I saw a making of Star Wars VHS when I was a kid and knew that this is what I wanted to do for a living and now I get to do it every single day so when he comes on set heavy-handed
Swinging that lightsaber and dark heavy handed I me like you know playing forend you don’t have to actually try to kill me I took out to much so come on it’s nice you did actually I do want to talk a little bit about the training um I
Know that you had a chance to sort of Swing to Lifesaver with the family and life St with your family doing that type of stuff and for you Rosario your shoulders just constantly burned I mean you had to learn a lot to make this work and look believable especially because
The animation sets one stage and real human bodies set something different to that to it right tell me a little bit about your training I mean well I think you did did a lot more than I did the amount of fighting that she does in in the series
Is pretty remarkable and so she was she was having to learn so much and I was so impressed with with your lightsaber skills and how how seriously you took it um and getting to to fight with you uh was just too much fun and he’s definitely been practicing
In between as he’s talked about cuz again heavy-handed I was like oh my God so intense it’s really great it was really just you know one of the things that I would thought this so remarkable watching you do these films all these years ago after we were in acting class
Together and we did Shad class and it was just sort of like wow to see you know just the range of of you know just what you can do physically in performance you know and we got to play with that a little bit in acting class
You know just very method you know drop falling on your head and how you feel but to kind of really be able to this is the first job for me really of experiencing what it is to be super physical for a role and that being the character and doing the training to the
Point where that started to feel real and feel grounded in me and feel natural in any kind of capacity was when I felt like I was talking into the character and so just it was magical and it felt like such um a validation having you
Once set like I think that felt like for every like you know just was really crossing over that feeling of the shows and the films and the animation like it suddenly was all coming together and the breath of it was just bre taking I don’t know if you know this
About Rosario but you need her to manifest things for you in in your life because that woman decides it’s going to happen and it does and I wanted to talk about how you came to land the rooll the story is amazing I mean boss logic where you
At I mean you know a fan cast is just the most insane thing and you know he drove me also she help that didn’t work up um also both really physical roles um but you know this this was something that I I saw online I reposted and it got before Dave and
Everyone and then as they were you know John and him were creating Mandalorian together um it was always in the back of dat’s mind that he always wanted to bring his character to life and it just happened to work out that we were in our
40s at this exact time sooka and I and we had this connection who could have ever thought and so you know this these posts that happened on Twitter uh like years earlier suddenly became significant and I’ll never forget that moment I was filming on this show Brier patch in New Mexico
And they both called me up on Skype because this is the four leg Zoom became old thing and you know he’s showing me that Dave’s been drawing me as this character now since the first season and going if this goes off well we would like to bring a soofa into the second
Season and I’ve had you in mind and like I was so glad talk about having a Wi-Fi problem moment that I was so happy about cuz I was like spasming I thought I was going to maybe have a seizure like my eyes and I was really trying to keep it
Together and then like the the internet really wasn’t working it was like we need to push this to a call and I was like thank God cuz I was like crying I was sweating I was pacing in my house and trying to keep it cool but I was
Like did he just dra’s character like from boss to digs mouth to Lucas to John to Star Wars oh my God to this to this to this hey for you reprising this role how did you approach it this time around with you know two decades behind you
Well I I first thought about approaching it from the left and then I realized I’m going to Comm it from the right and then I then I thought you know what my best bet is just to approach it head on so I approached it head on was what I did
Swagger um you know I I I know the character really well but this is a a a version of the character that I’ve never explored before um and and uh so there was you know new stuff there to discover and and and to do it with you was just
The coolest thing um you know you see her in the full get up and and it’s just totally transformative like you don’t you don’t see you anymore and and that was pretty mind-blowing just as your friend to like watch you disappear into this character
Um and and to to get to sort of discover the the dynamic of that relationship and you know it all just kind of started to click and and feel really good and and you know obviously Dave Fon was was was guiding us all the way through and um I
Don’t know it was it was a very special process the fan support and I I love it um I have to ask we’ve talked to other actors um in the show and we always ask tell us just a little bit about Dave colon and everyone yeah I have to just ask both of
You guys tell me tell me what you think about him I mean he’s amazing he he he really is uh he’s the real deal you know um uh an an incredible whole creative person you know director producer writer just you know uh uh he’s a he’s a Visionary
Um and I was thrilled to get to work with him I get emotional cuz it’s just like he is you know he is my father you know it’s just you know he just is such an encyclopedia for us you know um and his just love for this world and
Everything he’s Crea and every detail that he puts into it how much heart there is and just like fun that he has you know like Godzilla is his favorite character movie and like you know he just nerds out with all of us you know about all the things and he would rid me
Cuz all of my references would be Star Trek and you know don’t fre don’t like rock Space Opera you know um but he also knows it like the back of his hand as well cuz he’s a total nerd just like all the rest of us just super
Awesome and so he just had so much fun you know what I mean he’s got like the pressure you know the mantle that he holds the position that he has the power and just the responsibility and he’s just on set with us every day just so chill and so awesome and so accessible
And so ready like just so like it’s so magical still for him you know and it’s kind of wild cuz it’s been nearly two decades you know that this has taken over his life and you know just that fact that he relishes it it’s like I I
Have that you know i’ be on set every day and um one of the things that was super cool was you know a lot of the crew had been on Mandalorian and then going to bobet and like you know just kind of back to back before coming on to
Our show and you know people were really exhausted and they were like yeah but we’re ready to jump into this cuz you know RAR own day like we just know they’re going to keep the energy up and I know I remember like you know some of
The crew telling me that they had told that to people like you know comes on every single like make pH like just getting like super excited and and someone new would come on to the set and was like yeah but she going to do that for 6 months and they were like
Yeah 6 months in I was like I had this moment like when we’re shooting the last episode now where I can talk about CU it’s out and I’m a so of the white at this point and we have this camera on my back and we’re in the
Volume and doing this last big battle with all of these Undead Stormtroopers and they’re coming at us and I felt like I dropped into VR like I had I’m I’m in the outfit there cameras behind it’s just like you can just you’re only seeing Star Wars top to
Bottom all over and I’m holding my Savers and then they light Up and they go action and I’m just stand and they like this so yeah going you’re going to move like like I was like a got any I’m Fine let’s go we had Natasha um join us here this morning and she said about you specifically that woman is happy at 500 a.m. she there is no reason to be happy at 5: a.m. it was very sweet I love it it’s a good energy to bring to the set
Yeah hey I have to ask you how do you handle the the the passion and the love of the fan base especially because for you you haven’t been in this world now for so long it it it’s it’s the most amazing fan base [Applause] um a collection of
Bracelets um and actually I was given a couple I I do have the for you I was going to say I’m really sure have some thank you um seriously though all of the uh support and love that we felt is is it means the world to us um and so you know
Get to be here with all of you and and and meet so many of you it it it’s really a special thing and I want to thank you all for coming out and being a part of this I so cool they used annoy everybody
Inside of I so cool and I like I can start a soap line a sofa do like f Sal Ahsoka like have aaka one of these days that’s I want to retire me and her Universe you know what I’m Saying like print it this set both of you have this really impressive body of works and I’m wondering for you if this cast and the way that you connected with them um maybe diers uh it feels like from hearing your stories that it is a family in a unique and special way that’s
That’s once in a lifetime twice if you’re lucky when it comes to the sort of work you do would you agree how would you characterize it definitely once in a lifetime um and for me kind of twice in a lifetime it very much is a family and
You feel like you’re you’re you’re a part of this family for life and um you know uh when you when you get to meet new actors that are brought into the fold it’s it’s me his family member I mean it’s a tri and I I have to
Say we had a really dope reunion today M Jo’s in the cats have dinner with t later and you know and having people talk about like Jean the Virgin or just like these different like communities that I got to be a part of I kind of stepped in
Similarly like this late as established family and being welcomed in you know and just feeling so grateful and so I just I just you know I just found out at ADHD in last year which I don’t know how I did know that earlier kind of crazy
And and I just realized I I was really blessed because I you know because of Boss logic totally changed my life with this but you know I got and started with kids I was discovered into acting so it was just like these I can pinpoint these exact moments where my life took a
Complete turn and when I just think of how my brain works I don’t know what I would have done otherwise had I not ended up in being able to do what I do now but I’m just constantly and forever grateful of all of these families that I
Get to be a part of and just sad that I’m such a Hermit and I don’t really spend as much time afterwards I’m just a workaholic and but I I love being with all of you and I just love you know people try to ask like what’s your
Favorite moment but I grew up doing this you know I’ve been doing this since I was 15 this is actually my 30y year acting anniversary so next year will be 30 years time that crazy so while was perfect timing from kids to grandkid cuz my I’m a grandma
Now my baby today my little grand baby it’s just like the most beautiful thing to share I’ve seen so many of your kids grow up you know over the years and just these shared moments that we have and so I just thank you because it’s because of
You that we get to keep doing what we do and have these moments of these touchstones to kind of keep growing it in our time with each other you know so thank you what is it been like sharing the work and what it represents with your own family your daughter eventually
Your grandbaby your kids I mean multigeneration watch did they tell you um a little bit my my I haven’t got my daughter into it yet I’m working on that one still uh but I’m looking forward to getting to share all this with her one day one day so maybe not
Right now my daughter I didn’t even know she was watching until you know like my family always plays it so cool and then my daughter just you know were talking on the phone I was like okay I’ll talk to you she was like wait wait wait wait did you
Die I’m I’m sorry what and she goes did you die cuz her boyfriend’s like no she bad she went over the cliff she’s dead so I’m just saying I’m like but it’s your show that doesn’t make any sense and I was like are you watching my show
And we didn’t tell me she’s like yeah but did you not and I’m like no maybe watch the next episode I’ll ask both of you in the remaining time that we have Hayden what do you want your your legacy to be as an actor I I I I don’t I don’t think that
Way but um uh you know to to to to to get to uh be a part of Star Wars and to get to to play this character um that’s that’s really been the biggest blessing in my professional life and [Applause] um it’s it’s it’s a pretty cool thing
You know as as a creative person you hope to create things that will kind of out out outlive yourself you know and I feel like with Star Wars we we get a bit of that which is which is really cool at a con in Chicago and I’ll never forget like she
Was the last person there like with her little dog and people just lined up everyone was packing up all the other boots were shut but people just were lined around the whole Arena to still see her and I think I went out to eat and then I went back to my hotel and
Then I saw him walking a little dog outside and I was that annoying person I was like I’m so sorry about time but I love you so much and she was like I understand and I started to walk back and I remember going back into the hotel
Through the revolving doors and my uncle Gus I want to a shout out to my uncle Gus Vasquez comic book artist and I he’s waiting for me by the elevator and now sudden I see his eyes like this and he’s like so I turn around and carry pictures
Coming in like booking it coming in and it’s like yo my assistant told me who you Are I don’t know at all but she I think said seem’s like 7 LBS or something and she was like oh I really I really enjoy your work like you know I’m just tired you know whatever but just like blessings to you and I was
Like okay try to my PE was like trust all um and it just was the most incredible incredible moment so I don’t know what my legacy is going to be hopefully is just being a Storyteller in some capacity like that this that’s the most incredible thing that we can do I
That I’ve been able to do for a living put myself into other people’s shoes and try to imagine their world and be honest with it and there’s plenty of characters I play I do not like who make choices I do not agree with but it’s expanded my
Horizons and my perspective to do so and I’m so grateful to be a part of story like that would rent you know thinking about how many people have you ever met a trans person or people who were swatters I grew up in an abandoned building so to see like my life story
Being protagonist in a film was so remarkable to me and you know just that gift that we have of expanding people’s Horizons of just kind of allowing people to experience someone not just as distraction you know but really as connections building empathy with each other and I just think that’s just the dopest
Thing in the world so I hope I get to do it forever I hope AI doesn’t stop us from doing it come on I will say want you’re telling the car Fisher story about staying late I know that you are staying to continue to do autographs if you have one of those
Tickets do stick around in the room we’ll make you an announcement I I would like to remember this and I would like to take a selfie with you guys before we send you op to your work if that’s all right all right thank you guys this is
Really incredible oh see the bracelets I love this guys give it up as loud as you [Applause] [Applause] [Applause] [Applause] Can one more time [Applause] the all right if you have one of those tickets