Almost two years passed from Ahsoka Season 1's announcement in 2020 to its beginning of production in 2022, resulting in what some call a "lengthy preproduction phase." Casting began as early as 2021, but the full cast wasn't confirmed until 2023.
In developing stories for Season 1, co-creator Dave Filoni drew from the Lord of the Rings for inspiration. He wanted Ahsoka to go through a Gandalf-like transformation such as: meandering through the universe, finding her place in it by experiencing a metaphorical death, and finally coming back even stronger.