Rosario Dawson returns as Ahsoka Tano in her own spin-off series, having played the character in both The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett prior. As established in the animated shows The Clone Wars and Rebels, Ahsoka is a character who was trained by Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) who, until he appeared in Ahsoka, was last featured in the Obi-Wan Kenobi series starring Ewan McGregor. Star Wars is a family affair for McGregor, whose uncle Denis Lawson played Wedge in the original 1977 film and whose daughter Esther Rose McGregor recently appeared in Obi-Wan Kenobi. Ahsoka adds to the McGregor family roster by casting Ewan McGregor's wife Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Hera. But the links don't stop there. Long before Ahsoka, this duo teamed up for Quentin Tarantino's Death Proof.

In Ahsoka, Winstead's character Hera is a rebel who felt the devastation of the Clone Wars firsthand. Aboard her ship, the Ghost, she assembled her own team of rebels in her fight against the Empire. This included Mandalorian Sabine Wren, Garazeb Orrelios, Ezra Bridger, and the droid Chopper. Eventually, Hera became an agent of Bail Organa (adopted father of Princess Leia) which led to her recruitment into former Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano's network. In order for the Ahsoka series to illustrate the weight of this backstory and the connection between the two characters, it was important for their chemistry together to imply history. Fortunately, Dawson and Winstead had collaborated on Tarantino's aforementioned Death Proof over fifteen years ago in 2007, giving them a history of their own.

Death Proof

Two separate sets of voluptuous women are stalked at different times by a scarred stuntman who uses his "death proof" cars to execute his murderous plans.

Release Date

July 21, 2007

Director

Quentin Tarantino

Cast

Kurt Russell , Zoe Bell , Rosario Dawson , Vanessa Ferlito , Sydney Tamiia Poitier , Tracie Thoms

Rating

R

Runtime

127 minutes

Genres

Action , Thriller

Rosario Dawson and Mary Elizabeth Winstead Starred in 'Death Proof'

In 2007, Quentin Tarantino released his kick-ass exploitation throwback, Death Proof. The black comedy opens with three friends driving through Texas in celebration of Julia's (Sydney Tamiia Poitier) birthday. As a joke, they make a radio announcement offering a lap dance from Arlene (Vanessa Ferlito) to anyone who visits them at the bar they're driving to. Little do they know that a mysterious stuntman-turned-serial killer called Mike (Kurt Russell) uses this information to stalk the girls, ultimately killing them with his roll cage-rigged stunt car that he assures them is "death-proof". Free to kill another day, Stuntman Mike soon sets his sights on four new victims; real-life stuntwoman Zoë Bell, and actors Kim Mathis (Tracie Thoms), Abernathy Ross (Dawson), and Lee Montgomery (Winstead).

The playful backstabbing relationship between Dawson's Abernathy and Winstead's Lee comes to the forefront when the girls arrive in Lebanon, Tennessee. They test-drive a 1970 Dodge Challenger, unsupervised after Dawson's Abernathy tells the salesman that Winstead's Lee is a porn star and will stay behind with him. Zoë attempts to perform a stunt called "Ship's Mast" using the car, in which she rides the car's hood while holding onto fastened belts. When Stuntman Mike catches up with them, though, the girls' lives are put in danger. Although this is considered the worst Tarantino movie by some of his fans, the hangout quality of the story followed by female-driven action sequences actually harkens back to a genre lost in time. In fact, despite its flaws Death Proof was successful in introducing a whole new generation to the magic of exploitation cinema.

'Death Proof' Revived a Dead Genre, Making It Truly Death-Proof

To many mainstream moviegoers, Death Proof might feel like nothing that's ever been seen before, but that's not the case. The movie is a throwback to the "Grindhouse" or "Action House" movement in cinema, which was an American term for theaters that showed horror and exploitation films. Exploitation films get their name from exploiting current trends and extreme content, such as outlandish violence. Cannibal Holocaust and They Saved Hitler's Brain are famous examples, but Death Proof most closely resembles a 1965 film called Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!

Death Proof was released as part of a double feature called Grindhouse, in collaboration with Robert Rodriguez. Rodriguez's installment was Planet Terror, a film in which a biochemical outbreak forces a rogue military unit to battle zombie-like creatures. Planet Terror stars Bruce Willis and Josh Brolin as well as Rose McGowan who also appears in Death Proof as Stuntman Mike's first onscreen victim. Both Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez are known for reusing actors in several of their movies, and Grindhouse's Rosario Dawson is no exception. Before reviving the exploitation genre, Rodriguez also revived the hard-boiled noir genre in 2005's Sin City, based on Frank Miller's comic series and starring Bruce Willis and Rosario Dawson.

'Death Proof' and 'Sin City' Put Rosario Dawson on the Path to 'Ahsoka'

Rosario Dawson had previously worked with Rodriguez on Sin City in another role that - similarly to Death Proof - climaxes with several powerful women teaming up to take down monstrous men. Sin City, as well as its 2014 sequel, was renowned for its cutting-edge use of green screen and VFX to recreate the look of Frank Miller's comic panels on screen. Robert Rodriguez' genius creative solutions paid off for the director, who continues to author his own projects like Spy Kids: Armageddon but has also become one of Disney's premier Star Wars directors. Rodriguez was the showrunner on The Book of Boba Fett which of course featured Dawson as Ahsoka.

In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Rosario Dawson was asked about her success at Disney. She reflected on the technology of the "Volume" digital set, relating her own career development with that of the VFX itself. "It’s been a pretty remarkable journey to be at this place now and just working at this scale. We walked into the studio and saw an entire mansion built inside. It was really special. When we walked onto the Ahsoka set, I would say, 'We’ve come a long way from Sin City’s tape on the floor to the Volume,' and it’s been pretty remarkable watching how all of the tech and the ways we do it change." For many, Death Proof marked the first time the phenomenal action star graced their screens, and the same can be said for her Ahsoka co-star Mary Elizabeth Winstead. Dawson reflected, "I just feel so grateful for all the things I’ve graduated to, and it’s been quite the journey."

Death Proof is currently streaming on FuboTV in the U.S.

Watch on FuboTV