ORLANDO, Fla. — MegaCon is back in Orlando, and for many fans, it's a chance to meet some of their favorite celebrities.

One of the celebrity guests attending the event this year is Ashley Eckstein, who is known for originating the role of Ahsoka Tano in "Star Wars: The Clone Wars." 

Eckstein grew up in Orlando and took her love of Disney and Star Wars and turned it into an acting career. She appeared in shows like "That's So Raven" and "That '70s Show" before getting into voice acting. 

The experience of growing up with the theme parks in her backyard—with shows being filmed at Disney World and Universal—gave her a chance to see firsthand the acting opportunities that were out there.

“My parents used not only Disney but also all of the surrounding theme parks—Universal and SeaWorld—you know, they used the entire culture of Orlando as a classroom,” Eckstein said. “And they took advantage of every opportunity that the theme parks would provide to teach us.”

In 2016, Eckstein was cast to voice the character of Ahsoka. She was a Star Wars fan long before, but she says landing the role changed her life.

“I felt like I won the lottery, and I’ve been trying to live up to this incredible gift that’s been given to me really for the past 16 years,” she said.

Eckstein became an entrepreneur in 2010 when she created the fashion brand Her Universe to fill a void in the types of clothing that was available to certain fans.

“After I was cast as Ahsoka, I wanted more Star Wars clothes for me, and I quickly realized that that didn’t exist,” she said. “I was told that Star Wars was for men and boys and that if I wanted a Star Wars T-shirt made for me that I would have to be happy with a Men’s size small, and I thought that couldn’t be right because I knew I wasn’t alone. I knew there were a lot of other female fans.”

Her Universe has grown in the years since and includes apparel for men and children, too, and offers fashions for all types of fandoms, including Star Wars, Disney, Marvel and Harry Potter. 

As for Eckstein, she's excited to be at MegaCon this weekend. She’ll be signing autographs and taking pictures with fans, but she’ll also be participating in a Clone Wars panel, reuniting with actors Dee Bradley Baker, Matt Lanter and James Arnold Taylor.

“I look forward to meeting my fellow fans at MegaCon and just celebrating our fandom together,” she said.

WATCH THE INTERVIEW WITH ASHLEY ECKSTEIN IN THE PLAYER AT THE TOP OF THE ARTICLE.