Ever since Disney announced that they would be retconning the Star Wars Expanded Universe in favour of a new Canon continuity (most fans have yet to forgive them for that), one of the biggest questions on everyone's mind was whether or not Admiral Thrawn would be showing up in the new continuity.
The blue-skinned Chiss admiral first appeared in Timothy Zahn's 1991 novel Heir to the Empire and instantly became a fan favourite. He even became the leader of the Empire for a while, despite their strict xenophobic anti-alien policies.
The Chiss species first appeared in the Canon continuity in the game Star Wars: Commander, prompting speculation that Thrawn would make his way into the new continuity too at some point. And now it's been confirmed at Star Wars Celebration that he will indeed be showing up, in both Season 3 of Rebels and a new novel (appropriately titled Thrawn) from the creator himself, Timothy Zahn. It seems that Disney actually do care about giving the fans what they want.
