Eman Esfandi reveals major Ahsoka Season 2 details, his full-circle Spider-Man journey and the DC role he dreams of playing.
Eman Esfandi has gone from nearly leaving acting behind to becoming part of two of the biggest franchises in entertainment.
During the milestone 100th episode of Nerdtropolis’ The Moviegoers Society, the actor behind Ezra Bridger spoke candidly about his journey through Star Wars and into the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
Esfandi also delivered several major revelations. He confirmed that Ahsoka Season 2 will feature considerably more Ezra, described the new episodes as more intense and action-heavy, revealed that he trained two to three times harder, and shared the previously untold story of submitting himself for the role of Ned Leeds.
Eman Esfandi Confirms “A Lot More” Ezra in Ahsoka Season 2
One of the interview’s biggest revelations arrived when Esfandi was asked whether fans could expect to see more Ezra Bridger in the second season. “Oh my gosh, yeah, yeah,” Esfandi said. “A lot more than Season 1, that’s for sure.”
The first season did not physically reunite Ezra with Sabine Wren until late in the story. However, Esfandi suggested that Season 2 will move beyond the introductions and reunions that defined his initial live-action appearance.
“The goal was, if anything, right, set aside expanding and making the universe move forward and filling in some of that center canon and all that stuff,” Esfandi said while reflecting on Season 1. “There’s an opportunity here…to give the fans a full immersion where they get to connect again with their favorite character later.”
He pointed specifically to Ezra and Sabine’s emotional reunion. “Ezra showing up and having his moment with Sabine, ‘I knew I could count on you,’ and them having their back and forth before their hug, it felt like, ‘Okay, cool. I think we’re going to be able to give that experience.’”
With that emotional foundation established, Esfandi believes the series can now explore a new chapter for the beloved Rebels characters. “Thinking of Season 2, it feels more like it’s time to expand,” he said. “It’s time to experience a new part of Star Wars with this band of Rebels that we’ve come to love, we grew up with, and now we’ve reconvened with.”
“The band’s back together,” Esfandi added. “It’s time to go on tour.”
Season 2 Is “Way More Intense” and Has “Way More Action”
Without revealing specific story details, Esfandi offered one of the clearest descriptions yet of how Ahsoka Season 2 will differ from its first season. “The writing of Season 2 and what goes on, which I won’t say much about, it required everyone to do that,” he explained. “The tone shifts, you know? It’s way more intense. It’s way more action. It’s way more to deal with.”
Esfandi said the entire cast returned to the production with a new level of focus. “Everybody is so locked in,” he said. “Every actor that I met in Season 1 is not the same actor they are for Season 2.”
According to the actor, the physical change among the returning cast members was immediately noticeable. “Everyone’s fitter, and everyone’s just moving different, and everyone’s got their own routines locked in,” Esfandi said. “Season 1, it felt like everybody maybe was even understanding how to fit their personal expression and routines in with Star Wars and everything that it takes.”
He described the overall atmosphere as “very electric.” “It felt like everybody was on a mission,” Esfandi said. “It was a really amazing experience.”
Filming Ahsoka Season 2 Was a Seven-Month Commitment
Season 2 became the longest production Esfandi had ever experienced. “I’ve never been on a project that long,” he said. “Biggest project I’ve ever been on. I’ve never flown out to a different country and lived there for seven months for anything.”
The production took place at Pinewood Studios, where major films have been produced for decades. “We were at Pinewood Studios, where they also shot a lot of the most famous movies,” Esfandi said. “There are posters on every wall of them, and you’re like, ‘Wow.’”
He even recalled watching Tom Cruise travel over the studio. “Tom Cruise flew by on his helicopter,” he said. “I’m like, ‘There goes my hero.’”
Esfandi clarified that he meant Cruise was one of his heroes “in an action-star way,” before adding, “I don’t know the guy, but it was just awesome.”
Rosario Dawson’s Discipline Amazed Him
While discussing the demands of Season 2, Esfandi praised Rosario Dawson’s commitment to becoming Ahsoka Tano. “Especially Rosario Dawson, who has three hours, four hours of makeup on, an hour of makeup off at the end,” Esfandi said.
That lengthy transformation surrounded an already demanding workday. “In between that, a 12-hour day or 10-hour day, drives back and forth in and out of London,” he continued. “I am so impressed by her stamina at doing that.”
Esfandi compared Dawson’s process to his own, much shorter time in the makeup chair. “I have one hour max in the chair, and I’m falling asleep in it,” he joked. “Her discipline is amazing.”
Esfandi Trained Two to Three Times Harder for Season 2
The increased action forced Esfandi to rethink his entire approach to fitness. He performed his own fights during the first season, but the choreography revealed areas where his body needed more preparation. “I got to do all my own fights, which was awesome,” Esfandi said of Season 1. “It was really hard. I was not showing them, but at home I was stretching a lot and foam rolling.”
“My body was not ready for this level of flexibility while also aggressively moving,” he added. “Wushu and low stances and stuff like that, and high kicks. My goodness, the high kicks.” For Season 2, his routine became less about general athleticism and more about recreating the movements required during combat. “It became, okay, it’s all about mobility,” Esfandi said.
He developed a 35-minute routine consisting of approximately 15 exercises.
“I called it my action hero workout,” he revealed. “Basically, I was recreating fight scene movements into weighted reps to prepare.”
Esfandi also used convention appearances as opportunities to expand his lightsaber skills. “Any con I went to, if I saw someone who was really good at a lightsaber, I would spend some time with them,” he said. “I’m like, ‘Hey, I had never seen someone do that. How do you do that?”
The effort was significantly greater than his preparation for the first season. “I would say I trained twice to three times as much for Season 2,” he said. “And I still just barely was in the right condition for it.”
Should he return to another production with similar physical requirements, Esfandi plans to begin much earlier. “Next time, I’m going to start training for a year,” he said. “I would train for at least a year before so that I’m not just enough to make it to do all the things I need to do, but I can also surpass that.”
The Incredible Story Behind Becoming Ezra Bridger
Before joining Star Wars, Esfandi had decided to quit acting. “I had quit acting during the pandemic, become a musician under the name DragonWulf, and that was what I thought I was just going to do the rest of my life,” he said.
His representatives continued sending him auditions, but he repeatedly turned them down. “I’m turning them all down, turning them all down,” Esfandi recalled. “I’m not doing that, and I’m not acting. I’m just making music and didn’t really have any income.”
His path changed after he discovered online artwork depicting an older Ezra Bridger. “One day, I’m on the internet, and I see online there’s a picture, and it says something about Space Aladdin,” Esfandi said. “I’m like, ‘Space Aladdin? If anyone’s a Space Aladdin, that’s me. I love space. I love sci-fi.’”
He researched Ezra and noticed an unexpected resemblance.
“There’s this older picture of Ezra Bridger that someone made,” Esfandi said. “It looks really like Keanu Reeves, but also looks a lot like me.”
Esfandi had little knowledge of Star Wars at the time, but he found Rebels and began watching the animated series. “As soon as Ezra’s up on the screen, it’s almost like I felt someone enter the room in my living room,” he said.
Esfandi described experiencing a spiritual connection with an older version of the character. “He basically breaks it down where he’s like, ‘Yeah, I want to come through you to play Ezra in live action,’” Esfandi recalled. “I’m like, ‘Excellent. I would love that as well. Let’s do it.’”
He then emailed his representatives three photos of Ezra and three photos of himself. “I emailed them, ‘Hey, when they cast for this role, Ezra Bridger, Jedi in Star Wars, I’m going to play him. Use these pictures.’”
His manager was understandably surprised. “My manager calls me, and he’s like, ‘Hey, is this one of your woo-woo things?’” Esfandi said. “And I’m like, ‘Yeah.’ He’s like, ‘Okay, well, I hope it happens because I love Star Wars.’”
Six months later, Esfandi received an audition that appeared to match Ezra. “My agents were like, ‘We think this is that same role you mentioned,’” he said.
Esfandi completed only one take of each scene.“I did one take each because Ezra only wanted to do one take each,” he joked. “He was like, ‘Why would I do it again?’ I’m like, ‘All right, dude. Sorry.”
Robert Rodriguez Made the “Call of the Century”
After being placed on availability for Ezra, Esfandi contacted filmmaker Robert Rodriguez, who had previously directed him in Red 11.
“I shoot him a text: ‘Hey, do you know the creators of this show? I’m on avail to play Ezra Bridger,” Esfandi recalled. Rodriguez asked whether Dave Filoni was involved. “I say, ‘Yeah.’ He goes, ‘I’ll call him.’”
Esfandi described what happened next as a career-changing moment. “Robert Rodriguez makes the call of the century,” he said. “The call of the century to Dave.”
According to Esfandi, Rodriguez told Filoni, “Hey, you’re going to like Eman. He’s your guy.” “Dave told me that once he got the call, he was like, ‘All right, that’s it. That settles it. We like him,” Esfandi said. “And the next day, I was offered the role.”
Dave Filoni Told Esfandi, “You Are Ezra”
Esfandi made the unusual decision not to watch all of Star Wars Rebels before meeting Filoni and Jon Favreau. “I knew professional etiquette would be to go watch it all before I meet Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni,” he said. “But an artistic decision also plays into it.”
Esfandi did not want to overwhelm the connection he already felt with Ezra by turning his preparation into an academic exercise. “I don’t think the traditional method of, ‘Ingest all of the academic part of it, watch all the content you can, build out the thing,’” he explained. “I don’t think that’s the way I’m going to do this.”
Filoni understood his reasoning and offered a curated introduction to the character. “Dave said, ‘You don’t have to watch Rebels before, but I’ll send you a list of some episodes that give you an idea for your relationship to all the characters,’” Esfandi recalled.
Filoni sent him a selection of episodes highlighting characters such as Kanan, Hera, Ahsoka, Chopper, and Sabine. “He was very open with, ‘Eman, just, you are Ezra. Have fun,” Esfandi said. “‘Everything you’re doing is working. If there’s ideas we have, we’ll tell you.’” “I was like, ‘Wow, thank you,’” he added. “And I just got to play.”
Esfandi also credited Taylor Gray, who originally voiced Ezra in Rebels, for creating the foundation he inherited. “I’m on the shoulders of Taylor Gray with everything that I do,” Esfandi said. “It just wouldn’t exist without Taylor and the entire team.”
Star Wars Directly Led Him to Spider-Man: Brand New Day
Esfandi was filming Ahsoka Season 2 in London when another major opportunity arrived. “My manager gives me a call,” he said. “He’s like, ‘Hey man, I just got a call. You know Sarah Finn?’ I said, ‘Of course.’”
Finn, who had cast Esfandi in Ahsoka, recommended him for a role in the new Spider-Man movie. “They’re looking for this role in Spider-Man to play MJ’s new boyfriend,” Esfandi revealed. “They’re trying to figure out who the right person would be, and she thought of me.”
Finn asked whether Esfandi would attend an in-person audition in London. “You just don’t even get many in-person auditions anymore anyway,” he said. “Living in London, new experience. Shooting Star Wars, a new experience. Auditioning for a movie in London, awesome. From the casting director of Star Wars, that’s the connection, awesome.”
The production did not initially tell him exactly what the audition was for.
“They didn’t give us many details about the role,” Esfandi said. “They didn’t say what movie it was for.”
Esfandi and his representatives began piecing together clues. “We were doing detective work trying to figure out what I was auditioning for,” he said.
Once Zendaya’s name entered the conversation, they realized it was connected to Spider-Man. “Something got brought up about Zendaya, and that’s when we were like, ‘Whoa, okay,’” Esfandi said. “So this is for Spider-Man. Whoa.”
A few weeks later, his manager called again. “He’s like, ‘Hey, you ready to hop on over and go to Spider-Man?’” Esfandi recalled. “I’m like, ‘Yeah, that would be awesome.’”
Because he remained under contract with Ahsoka, Lucasfilm had to approve the scheduling. “Star Wars production had to approve it and timing and stuff,” he said. “I had two days, and I went and shot.”
After completing his scenes, Esfandi immediately returned to Star Wars. “It was fast,” he said. “And then I just boom, back to Star Wars to finish another couple of months.”
Tom Holland Was the First Person to Welcome Him
Esfandi said Holland personally welcomed him upon arriving on set. “Tom was the first one to come up to me,” Esfandi said. “Class act.”
Holland told him, “Hey man, welcome to the team. Thanks for being here.” Esfandi replied, “Thanks for having me, man. It’s so great to be here.”
The actor admitted that he was careful not to interfere with Holland or Zendaya’s established working process. “I don’t want to impose on his process or his experience at all,” Esfandi said. “I just want to come do the role that I was cast for and get out of here. I don’t want to make it anything.”
However, he quickly felt comfortable. “He was so kind,” Esfandi said. “Everybody was. Destin, Jacob, Zendaya, they were just so warm and welcoming.”
“It’s just like being on the set on the stage next door,” he added. “We all know each other, even though I don’t know them. But that’s how they treated me.”
The Brooklyn Apartment Was Fully Built in London
Esfandi was impressed by the construction of the set used for his scene. “It was pretty much all the way built out,” he said.
Although the scene appears to take place in Brooklyn, it was filmed inside Pinewood Studios. “I walked up some stairs into a Brooklyn apartment, stairwells and everything,” Esfandi said. “I was like, ‘Oh my God, it looks so real.’”
“We’re just on a stage, but the whole thing was up there,” he added. “It was like a whole building. You were in an apartment, really. They built it.”
Destin Daniel Cretton Was “Very Relaxed” and “Very Calm”
Esfandi also offered insight into Cretton’s directing style. “He’s fascinating,” Esfandi said. “He’s very relaxed, very calm, knows what he wants.”
According to Esfandi, Cretton allowed the performances to develop across multiple takes rather than immediately forcing the actors into a single delivery.
“He also lets it run sometimes,” Esfandi explained. “He’s like, ‘Yeah, let’s do it again,’ and just kind of lets it change as the actors—no take is the same, really.”
“Intonations, tone, speed, cadence, that stuff changes take to take,” he continued. “It seemed like he let it find its natural equilibrium.”
Esfandi said Cretton then offered precise notes once he had captured the different pieces he needed. “It seems like he’s almost putting the movie together at the same time,” he said. “The whole time, he’s very relaxed.”
“It’s almost like he’s watching the movie,” Esfandi added. “Very calm.”
Esfandi Did Not Realize How Devastating His Scene Would Be
Esfandi’s character becomes part of an emotionally painful moment for Peter Parker. However, the actor did not realize how deeply the scene would affect Peter until he watched the completed movie. “I felt so bad, man,” Esfandi said. “I felt horrible.”
“I’m watching, thinking, ‘Oh, this is way worse than I thought,’” he continued. “This is down bad, man.”
Once footage began appearing in the marketing, he understood the importance of the moment. “As soon as I started seeing it in the trailers and in the edits and in the ads, I was like, ‘Must be rock bottom or something like that,’” he said.
Esfandi ultimately considered it a privilege to contribute to such an important point in Peter’s story. “I just thought, ‘Wow, kind of what an honor, honestly.’”
He also confirmed that every part of his performance remained in the finished film. “Everything I said is in there,” Esfandi revealed. “Boom, simple, smooth. And I liked how it all plays out.”
Esfandi First Tried to Join Spider-Man as Ned Leeds
One of the interview’s biggest Marvel scoops was a story Esfandi said he had never previously shared. “Actually, this is a story I’ve never told anybody,” he began.
When Marvel launched a worldwide casting search for Ned Leeds, Esfandi was studying economics at the University of Texas and beginning his acting career in Austin. “The first Spider-Man did a worldwide casting for Ned’s role, and I had just started acting in Austin, Texas,” he revealed. “I was still at UT doing an economics degree.”
The description presented Ned as a nerdy, technology-focused friend of Peter Parker. “I sent an email to play the—at the time it was written like nerdy tech sidekick best friend to Spider-Man,” Esfandi recalled.
He even changed his appearance for the submission. “I try to make my hair look a specific way, try to look as nerdy as I can and send that in,” he said.
Esfandi did not receive a response, but he believes Marvel selected the right actor. “Don’t hear anything, of course,” he said. “They picked the right guy, Jacob.”
Ned Leeds Was Not His Only Early Spider-Man Audition
After his career began growing in Austin, Esfandi signed with a Los Angeles manager. The first major audition he received was for another role in Spider-Man: Homecoming. “The first real audition I got was to play a role in the new Spider-Man,” Esfandi said. “It’s a character that sits with Zendaya on the bus.”
The role was described as a supporting lead, making Esfandi feel as though he had finally entered Hollywood. “I was like, ‘Oh my God, this is the big leagues,’” he recalled. “‘This is Spider-Man. This is the real deal. This is Hollywood now.’”
Casting director Sarah Finn approved Esfandi’s audition despite his limited résumé. “He didn’t have any credits to pitch or anything, but they just responded to his look, and they were going to have him read,” Esfandi said while describing what his manager later told him.
The audition helped validate his manager’s decision to sign him. “That was kind of his sign, too,” Esfandi said. “‘Okay, this Eman guy, he’s got something.’”
Esfandi did not land the role, but the story eventually came full circle. “Seven years later, eight years later, my manager moves firms,” Esfandi said. “The first thing I book with his new firm is to play this role in Spider-Man: Brand New Day.”
“That was just this crazy full-circle moment,” he added.
His Dream DC Role Is an Older Terry McGinnis
After entering Star Wars and Marvel, Esfandi revealed that he already has a dream DC character. “I know exactly who I’d want to play,” he said.
That character is Terry McGinnis from Batman Beyond. “It’s my dream character to play,” Esfandi revealed. “Terry McGinnis, Batman Beyond.”
However, he does not want to revisit Terry’s high school years. “He’s younger, and I don’t want to go to the high school thing with Terry and all that stuff,” Esfandi explained. “I want to blossom like an adult.”
Instead, Esfandi wants a project that introduces an experienced Terry inside an established futuristic Gotham City. “We just jump right into a cyberpunk world of Batman,” he said. “That’s one of the best Batmans.”
His love of science fiction makes the futuristic setting especially appealing. “I love sci-fi, man,” Esfandi said while discussing the world and villains of Batman Beyond.
He Is Training to Become a Professional Tennis Player
Esfandi also revealed that he is pursuing a professional tennis career. “I’m training to be a pro tennis player,” he said.
The actor previously taught tennis for 8.5 years, and the sport unexpectedly helped him prepare for lightsaber combat. “I’ve been training to use a stick in my hand since I was 13,” Esfandi joked. “It’s the same thing now with just a different stick.”
Esfandi plans to bring his fitness and tennis training to Twitch. “I look forward to doing Twitch streams IRL for fitness, where once a week, I’m just like, ‘Hey, work out with me,’” he said. “It’s an at-home workout, no weights or anything. Just do this at home.”
“It’s fun to work out with a buddy,” he added. “And then also tennis streams because I’m training to be a pro tennis player.”
During the episode, Esfandi also showed the lightsaber used during his Season 2 preparation. “This was the Ahsoka Season 2 training saber,” he said. “It’s just a light, easy-to-spin saber that we use. It’s got all the scuff marks on it from stunt training.”
DragonWulf Recently Performed With Story of the Year
Esfandi continues making music under the name DragonWulf. He recently performed with Story of the Year at the Observatory North Park in San Diego and later joined the group at the Vans Warped Tour in Long Beach.
“I just performed onstage first at the Observatory North Park in San Diego with Story of the Year and then at Vans Warped Tour in Long Beach,” Esfandi revealed.
“I’m a Warped Tour kid,” he added. “I did Jacoby Shaddix’s part.”
Esfandi also had the opportunity to meet Shaddix after the performance. “I make music under DragonWulf, so I was there as DragonWulf, basically,” he said.
The experience arrived during the same period as the Spider-Man: Brand New Day premiere. “It was all these universes colliding for me in the last three days,” Esfandi said. “And then the Spider-Man premiere. That was just like, ‘Wow.’”
A Milestone Episode Filled With Major Revelations
Esfandi’s appearance was a fitting celebration of 100 episodes of The Moviegoers Society. The conversation delivered meaningful new information about Ahsoka Season 2 while uncovering the full-circle story behind his arrival in Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
Fans now know that Season 2 will offer “a lot more Ezra, “way more action, and a more intense tone. They also know that Esfandi’s Marvel journey began years earlier when he submitted himself for Ned Leeds and later auditioned for another Spider-Man: Homecoming role.
His path has taken him from student films in Austin and teaching tennis to becoming Ezra Bridger, entering Peter Parker’s world, and potentially inspiring a future campaign for an older Terry McGinnis.
At the end of the interview, Esfandi thanked the fans who have supported him throughout his career. “The empire is growing, and the network is growing,” he said. “I’m so grateful to everyone in the Bridger Brigades. Thank you so much for the support.”
Esfandi then closed our 100th episode with a fitting message: “May the Force be with you.”
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Sean Tajipour
Sean Tajipour is the Founder and Editor of Nerdtropolis and the host of the Moviegoers Society and Reel Insights Podcast. He is also a member of the Critics Choice Association. You can follow on Twitter and Instagram @Seantaj.
