Pooja Pillai is an entertainment journalist with Asian Media Group, where she covers cinema, pop culture, internet trends, and the politics of representation. Her work spans interviews, cultural features, and social commentary across digital platforms.
She began her reporting career as a news anchor, scripting and presenting stories for a regional newsroom. With a background in journalism and media studies, she has since built a body of work exploring how entertainment intersects with social and cultural shifts, particularly through a South Indian lens.
She brings both newsroom rigour and narrative curiosity to her work, and believes the best stories don’t just inform — they reveal what we didn’t know we needed to hear.
After much speculation, Hayden Christensen has confirmed he’s returning as Anakin Skywalker in the second season of Ahsoka. The actor made the announcement during the Star Wars Celebration event in Tokyo, sharing his enthusiasm about revisiting a version of Anakin that fans haven’t fully explored in live-action, the Clone Wars-era Jedi, before his fall to the dark side.
Christensen said that bringing this version of Anakin to life has long been something he and Star Wars creator George Lucas had hoped to explore on screen. The new season, which starts filming next week, will give fans a deeper look at that chapter of the character's life, though details about his exact role remain under wraps.
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The new season is also set to expand the show’s already large ensemble. Game of Thrones actor Rory McCann joins the cast as Baylan Skoll, taking over the role after the death of Ray Stevenson in 2023. Stevenson had made a strong impression as the complex and conflicted Jedi-turned-antagonist in the first season. McCann, known for playing The Hound, was chosen for the intensity he brings to his roles, something Ahsoka creator Dave Filoni said was essential to continuing Baylan’s story.
Filoni described the process of moving forward without Stevenson as difficult but necessary. He revealed that the decision to recast the character was made in consultation with Stevenson’s family, who supported the continuation of the storyline. Filoni stressed that Baylan’s arc is a counterpoint to Ahsoka’s, both characters walked away from the Jedi Order, but chose very different paths.
Other returning cast members include Rosario Dawson, Eman Esfandi, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, and Lars Mikkelsen who is now preparing for an all-out conflict with Admiral Ackbar, also confirmed to return. Filoni even joked that he resisted slipping in Ackbar’s iconic “It’s a trap!” line, though the temptation was strong.
Fans were also shown concept footage teasing new creatures, a mysterious Dathomirian witch, and the continuation of the Mortis Gods subplot. One crowd favourite? The fluffy “Lothballs”: a nickname Rosario Dawson gave to the Loth kittens that are set to return.
The iconic Ahsoka season 1 posterStar Wars
From familiar faces to new rivalries and unexplored corners of the galaxy, Ahsoka season 2 looks ready to dive even deeper into Star Wars mythology.
ACTRESS and writer Meera Syal and DJ Bobby Friction will reflect on their memories of the BBC’s Asian-themed output as the broadcaster this month celebrates six decades of programmes to serve the community.
From Nai Zindagi Naya Jeevan in the late 1960s to Desi DNA and Goodness Gracious Me in the 1990s and more recently, Virdee, the corporation said it has widened “the space for British south Asian expression”.
Syal will reminisce at the Asian programming she grew up watching in Network East with Meera Syal, while Friction will go through the archives in South Asian Music at the BBC.
BBC head of creative diversity, Jessica Schibli, said, “60 years of south Asian programming across the BBC is a significant moment – celebrating pioneering shows that launched trailblazing talent, to today’s bold storytelling woven across our content.
“This anniversary is a celebration of the journey so far and a reaffirmation of the BBC’s mission to serve all audiences and reflect modern Britain, including South Asian voices on air and in shaping our creative output.”
To mark 60 years of content aimed at south Asians, the BBC said there will a special night of classic shows on BBC Four and iPlayer.
Among new shows, the BBC said drama series Film Club – which dwells on love, family and friendship - will be launched on October 7. It stars Nabhaan Rizwan; his brother and BAFTA-winner Mawaan Rizwan created the comedy series Juice.
Later this year, Guz Khan will star in a new Christmas comedy Stuffed and The Split Up introduces fresh British south Asian voices to drama, the corporation said.
The BBC Film Hamlet, featuring Riz Ahmed, is a contemporary take through a south Asian lens on Shakespeare’s story, exploring identity and power, it added.
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