A ‘Star Wars: Tales of the Empire’ Character Cheat Sheet

Star Wars Day is upon us once again. There’s already an expansive slate of Jedi goodness on Disney Plus, and on Saturday, May 4, the streamer is adding a new title to the mix. 

Star Wars: Tales of the Empire is the second installment in the animated Tales anthology — the first of which is Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi — that will “journey into the fearsome Galactic Empire through the eyes of two warriors on divergent paths, set during different eras,” the Disney Plus synopsis reads.

Tales of the Jedi explored new storylines for characters Ahsoka Tano and Count Dooku. Star Wars: Tales of the Empire operates similarly but does so with the Galactic Empire in mind. The prominent players in the new series are Nightsister Morgan Elsbeth (Diana Lee Inosanto) and former Jedi Barriss Offee (Meredith Salenger). The series will take place in the early days of The Clone Wars era and during the aftermath of the Republic’s fall. 

Along with Elsbeth and Offee, Tales of the Empire will feature familiar faces fans have seen throughout the Star Wars franchise. 

With the large amount of Star Wars adventures at one’s disposal, keeping track of who’s who and why they matter can be a challenge. If you need a refresher before buddying up with some evil Inquisitors and Sith Lords, read on for our guide to the essential characters appearing in Star Wars: Tales of the Empire.

Barriss Offee

Former Jedi Barriss Offee — who used to be known as the Padawan of Luminara Unduli — was once friends with Ashoka Tano. That’s until an explosion at the Jedi Temple caused a rift between the two. Barriss framed Tano for the inciting incident which set things in motion for Barriss to leave the Jedi Order for good. 

The last we saw Barriss in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, she was imprisoned for her crimes. These new episodes will delve back into Barriss’s story and by the looks of things, she’ll end up on the path to becoming an Inquisitor. You don’t want to mess with an Inquisitor. 

Salenger, who previously voiced Barriss in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, reprises the character in Tales of the Empire. 

Morgan Elsbeth

Morgan Elsbeth first appeared in season 2 of The Mandalorian, where she ruled the city of Calodan with an iron fist. The character, played by Diana Lee Inosanto, returned in Ahsoka. This will be the first time Inosanto has played the character in animated form.

Elsbeth’s allegiance to the Empire doesn’t waver. Her alliance with Grand Admiral Thrawn was forged after the Massacre of the Nightsisters. Tales of the Empire will expand on this formidable relationship.

Grand Admiral Thrawn

Grand Admiral Thrawn, a Star Wars villain worth fearing, has maintained his unique character throughout the Star Wars universe. Instead of relying on Force powers, this iconic baddie uses his mind to wreak havoc. He has persevered through the original Star Wars canon and the one Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau have cultivated throughout the programs on Disney Plus, creating a sense of continuity that fans can connect with. 

Thrawn was first seen in Star Wars: Rebels, where he served as a Grand Admiral for the Empire. He appeared more recently in live-action form on Ahsoka. Lars Mikkelsen reprises the role in Tales of the Empire. 

Wing

Wing is a relatively new character who makes a quick appearance in The Mandalorian season 2. After Elsbeth is overthrown as leader of Calodan, Wing is made governor in her place.

Wing Tao Chao, the former Disney Imagineer who played the live-action character, reprises the character in Tales of the Empire.

The Fourth Sister

Rya Kihlstedt first portrayed the lethal Inquisitor in Obi-Wan Kenobi. She’s a former Jedi named Lyn. Not much is known about the character. 

Tales of the Empire will surely fill in some necessary blanks regarding this villain. The Grand Inquisitor

Formerly a guard at the Jedi Temple, the Grand Inquisitor is a noteworthy brute who kills Jedi for the Empire. The character appeared in Star Wars: Rebels as the main baddie in the first season. By season’s end, he had perished. 

Rupert Friend played the top Inquisitor, who returned in Obi-Wan Kenobi. Jason Isaacs voices the villain in Tales of the Empire, which will notably occur before Rebels’ events.

General Grievous

Audiences first met General Grievous in Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith. The robotic alien has a thing for collecting lightsabers — he has four arms and swinging multiples around is pretty cool to watch. Grievous here is a bad guy and is in cahoots with The Empire, but is not a Sith and has no Force capabilities. He later appeared in The Clone Wars where he was seen leading his droid army in the mass slaughter of the Nightsisters.

Sound editor Matthew Wood has voiced General Grievous since the third Star Wars prequel film. He returns once again to reprise the baddie in Tales of the Empire.

Darth Vader

Everyone’s favorite Star Wars villain briefly appears in the Tales of the Empire trailer, but that’s enough to whet the appetites of fans far and wide. The Sith Lord, formerly known as Anakin Skywalker, led the Inquisitorious program during the Empire’s reign. Its sole mission was to hunt down every Jedi.

Considering the timelines in Tales of the Empire, it’s easy to deduce that’s precisely what we’ll see him doing in the new animated series.

Be sure to check out our other Star Wars Day coverage, including themed kitchen items, exciting new merch and our Star Wars gift guide.