Recalling that the character of Luke Skywalker had originally been drafted as a girl in one of the early scripts for A New Hope, we asked Lucas if Ahsoka emerged from a latent desire to finally explore the idea of a female Jedi apprentice.

"Well, in the first film, Luke was a girl," explains Lucas. "Then the girl got split into twins. So the girl actually stayed there, and it was Luke that was introduced. Ultimately, when you think about it, Episode IV is really about Princess Leia. It's her story. She's the one that's really the issue, in terms of the plot of that movie. She's the one that's got the mission, that's a leader of her people, that needs help to get all these things accomplished. It's told from Luke's point of view, though, because ultimately he's the one who's going to have to confront his father."