Who Is Ashley Eckstein?
Ashley Eckstein is a talented actress, voice artist, entrepreneur, author, and fashion designer who is best known as the voice of Ahsoka Tano throughout the Star Wars franchise, starting with Star Wars: The Clone Wars in 2008.
In addition to that, Eckstein has provided the voice for characters Dagger/Shriek, Cheetah/Young Barbra Ann Minerva, and Mia-the Bluebird in the television shows Ultimate Spider-Man, DC Super Hero Girls, and Sofia the First, respectively.
Besides that, she is the founder of the groundbreaking fangirl fashion company and lifestyle brand, Her Universe, founded in 2010. The brand proudly holds the license to products and merch related to Star Wars, Doctor Who, Star Trek, and Marvel.
Ashley Eckstein’s Bio: Age, Height, and Family
The skilled voice actress Eckstein was born on September 22, 1981, in Louisville, Kentucky, USA. Her given name is Maria Ashley Drane, while her birth sign is Virgo. The Star Wars star stands at the height of 5 feet 2 inches (1.57 meters).
Growing up, she was raised in Orlando, Florida, by her family members, including her parents Sharon Drane and Tony Drane, and three siblings Micheal, Tara, and Taylor.
Moreover, according to IMDb, she embraces Italian, English, and some German, Irish, Cornish, Luxembourgish, and Belgian ancestry.
Ashley Eckstein Memories with Parents
Eckstein’s parents occasionally make their appearances through the actress’s social media posts. Doing that, the celebrated fashion designer posted a romantic picture of her parents on her Instagram handle on October 26, 2020. In the picture, Sharon and Tony are seen hugging and looking into one another’s eyes.
The post’s caption suggested that her parents had a great date night experience through the My Disney Experience App. The whole caption read:
My parents are connected to My Disney Experience App so when they have date nights @waltdisneyworld I see their #photopass photos…This one made me LOL! Looks like they are starting a new challenge “Pass the Mickey Balloon without using your hands.” #disneyparks #disneyworld #disneyfamily
Similarly, on the occasion of the 30 years of Disney Weddings, Eckstein took to Instagram in February 2021 to share a picture from her wedding day with her beloved father. In the post’s caption, she went down memory lane to share some of her special memories with her father.
The actress remembered that she and her father had danced to the song “My Funny Valentine” on her wedding.
She explained, “When I was 10 years old, I sang this song [My Funny Valentine] to my Disney Cast Member Dad at my Elementary School Valentine’s Day Daddy/Daughter Dance. It was so nice to have this full-circle moment.”
Manages Good Bond With Her Sisters
In addition to being a loving daughter, Eckstein manages a great bond with her siblings, too, and evidently enough, her love for her three siblings can be witnessed in her social media.
In one of those instances, the Star Wars: The Clone Wars voice star quoted a tweet of Disney Style on April 27, 2017. The tweet featured a picture of her elder sister Taylor’s wedding with her husband, Tyler.
You have to see this magical @DisneyWeddings portrait session! https://t.co/bE9YCD45VP #wedding #disney pic.twitter.com/ETPbYrMZDk
— Disney Style (@DisneyStyle) April 26, 2017
Eckstein quoted the tweet, writing, “SUPER PROUD BIG SISTER MOMENT!!! This is my sister Taylor and brother in law Tyler!!!”
Likewise, the author also took to Instagram on November 15, 2020, to wish her sister Tara a happy birthday. Through her post caption, she wrote, “Happy Birthday to my amazing sister Tara @dailydoublescoop.”
“We just had the BEST night celebrating her birthday @gktwvillage and their Night of a Million Lights,” she shared.
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Ashley Eckstein Early Career and Education
Eckstein received a good upbringing while growing up, all thanks to her caring parents. She completed her high school education at Dr. Phillips High School, located in Dr. Phillips, Florida, near Orlando. The actress is yet to disclose the details about her further academic qualifications.
Along with her education, she also gradually propelled her career as a child actor. At the age of 12, she got her first acting project in a community-theater production of The Miracle Worker to portray the real-life disability advocate Helen Keller.
After she appeared in a few more stage, television, and TV-commercial work in her native Orlando, Florida, she moved to Los Angeles to grasp further opportunities.
To her delight, Eckstein was cast in the role of Lisa Rossbach, the goddaughter of Admiral Chegwidden, on the military-justice drama series JAG (2001).
Following that, she portrayed Jan Brady in the TV-movie The Brady Bunch in the White House (2002), the recurring role of Muffy on the Disney Channel sitcom That’s So Raven (2003-2006), a small role as Alicia in the film Sydney White (2007), and Ms. Cole in Alice Upside Down (2007).
Ashley Eckstein Voice Acting Career
Besides Star Wars’ Ahsoka Tano, she is also the voice of Dagger on Disney XD’s Ultimate Spider-Man, Mia the bluebird on Disney’s Sofia The First, and Cheetah on DC Super Hero Girls.
Eckstein also provided the voice for Yaeko in the English adaptation of Studio Ghibli’s film Only Yesterday in 2016, alongside Star Wars actress Daisy Ridley and acclaimed actor Dev Patel.
Launched Own Company: Her Universe
In addition to her acting career, Eckstein is a successful entrepreneur, author, and fashion designer, who has showcased her skills of fashion designing in creating unique and appealing merch and accessories for her entrepreneurial stint—her own company, Her Universe, the groundbreaking fangirl fashion company and lifestyle brand.
The company’s website describes the company as:
Hoping to change the perception that science fiction and fantasy is just for boys, Her Universe has joined forces with some of the biggest names in the sci-fi/fantasy world to create fangirl apparel and accessories for such well-known names as Star Wars, Doctor Who, Star Trek and Marvel.
The company was founded in 2010 to create stylish, fashion-forward merchandise for female sci-fi fans.
In this present day, the company is a stand-alone subsidiary of Hot Topic, Inc., expanding into an entertainment production house. Under the production, a “geek couture” fashion show called The Her Universe Fashion Show takes place every year at San Diego Comic-Con, along with a documentary series based on the fashion show for Comic-Con HQ.
Ashley Eckstein’s Net Worth
An exciting career and successful entrepreneurial stint with Her Universe has provided Eckstein an equally exciting and luxurious lifestyle and possibly a hefty net worth.
The net worth figures, however, remain under the wraps, as the actress is yet to disclose the details publicly.
Married To a Baseball Player
Ashley Eckstein is a happily married woman. She got married to former professional baseball player David Eckstein at his family church in Sanford, Florida, on November 26, 2005. The marriage was followed by a reception at Walt Disney World.
The couple’s engagement also dated in the same year of their marriage on the 4th of February in Orlando.
Expressing love for her husband, Ashley posted a picture of David, which was complemented with a heartfelt caption on August 21, 2020.
In the caption, she expressed that she feels proud to be the wife of David, who was blessed with a wonderful career that did not come easy for him. She was proud of his courage, dedication, and passion for becoming an MLB player.
He was blessed in his career but nothing came easy. He was often referred to as gritty and scrappy. He was never talented enough, tall enough, fast enough, he was only “just enough.” All of these words can often be perceived as back handed compliments but we look at them as our winning recipe.
The long-run marriage, however, has not seen the couple give birth to any children yet.
Speaking about her husband David, he served as an infielder, playing for several major League Baseball teams (MLB) for ten seasons. The teams he represented include Anaheim Angels (2001–2004), St. Louis Cardinals (2005–2007), Toronto Blue Jays (2008), Arizona Diamondbacks (2008), and San Diego Padres (2009–2010).
In 2006, he was won the ‘World Series Most Valuable Player Award’ for his skillful game on the field.
The Seminole High School alum initially started playing baseball for his college baseball team at the University of Florida.
Presently, he works as a special assistant in the Pittsburgh Pirates operations department and manages a blissful married life with his wife.
