See 'Star Wars' fan-favorite Grand Admiral Thrawn come to life in limited-edition statue (exclusive)

Later, Vader — and to the pits (of Carkoon) with you, Palpatine. The live-action Star Wars universe is about to be rocked by the overdue arrival of Grand Admiral Thrawn. The blue-skinned Chiss officer who previously appeared onscreen in the animated series Star Wars Rebels will play a major role in the upcoming Disney+ series Ahsoka, starring Rosario Dawson as Anakin Skywalker's former Padawan. And the sculptors at Gentle Giant Ltd. are celebrating Thrawn's promotion with a limited-edition statue that puts him on his throne... where he belongs.

Retailing for $250, Gentle Giant's Premiere Collection statue is available for preorder at the company's official site starting June 23, and will ship to 1,000 lucky buyers in early 2024. The 9-inch figure comes in a full-color box that includes a numbered certificate of authenticity that you can present to any Imperial Troopers requesting to see your papers.

Thrawn's history in the far, far away Star Wars galaxy predates Rebels, of course. The character made his debut in Timothy Zahn's seminal Heir to the Empire trilogy of novels that hit shelves in the early '90s when the franchise was in a fallow period. Even on the page, Thrawn proved a formidable foe, but he appeared to vanish into the ether when Walt Disney purchased Lucasfilm in 2012 and relegated Zahn's work to the non-canon part of the Star Wars timeline.

Enter Dave Filoni, who proved his Jedi bona fides with the animated Clone Wars series that started in 2008 and went on to co-create Rebels in 2014. Thrawn exited obscurity and entered current Star Wars canon in the show's third season as a main antagonist. Not coincidentally, Filoni is also overseeing Ahsoka and he tapped Lars Mikkelsen — who voiced the character on Rebels — to reprise the role in the flesh. Don't be surprised if Thrawn is front and center in Filoni's announced Star Wars feature film as well, which is expected to serve as a series finale for many of the recent live-action shows he has been involved with, including The Mandalorian andThe Book of Boba Fett.

Gentle Giant's Thrawn on Throne statue is specifically modeled after the character's Rebels appearance, but you can likely expect to see other versions coming down the pike as he solidifies his place as the next Star Wars villain to beat. After all, you can't keep a good (or a bad) Chiss down.

Gentle Giant's Star Wars Rebels Thrawn on Throne Premier Collection 1/7 Scale Statue is available for pre-order on June 23 at the official site.