- "Obi-Wan Kenobi begins 10 years after the dramatic events of Revenge of the Sith, where he faced his greatest defeat: the downfall and corruption of his best friend and Jedi apprentice, Anakin Skywalker turned-evil-Sith-Lord, Darth Vader. Our fans will be thrilled that Hayden Christensen will be returning in the role of Darth Vader. This will be the rematch of the century. The series is directed by Deborah Chow, coming off the great work she did with us as a director on Season 1 of The Mandalorian. Production will begin in March of next year. Here is an early look at Obi-Wan Kenobi."
- ―Kathleen Kennedy announces the title of the series, and presents an exclusive video on the series during Investor Day 2020
Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi is a live-action television series currently being developed by Lucasfilm. It is set to air on Disney's new online streaming service, Disney+. The series will feature Ewan McGregor reprising his role as Obi-Wan Kenobi from the Star Wars prequel trilogy and Hayden Christensen reprising his role as Darth Vader. It will take place ten years after Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith.
Contents
Development[edit | edit source]
As a film[edit | edit source]
- "It wasn't always going to be a series, not initially. When we first started talking about, that wasn't really in the cards but everything's changed so much, so quickly. It's really exciting that it is now. I'm really into the idea to be able to tell the story over several hours instead of just one hit. I think it's going to be quite cool."
- ―Ewan McGregor on how the series evolved from a film
Ewan McGregor first appeared as Obi-Wan Kenobi in 1999.
In 2013, news were released that The Walt Disney Company-Lucasfilm Ltd. brand was developing several theatrical pictures separate from the core, episodic Star Wars saga, which were later denominated as the Star Wars Anthology Series line.[8] Talks about a potential Obi-Wan Kenobi-centric movie as part of the Anthology series arose, and Ewan McGregor, the actor who played Kenobi in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, was approached to reprise the role.[9] However, McGregor knew about the project as far as back in 2015,[2] and until 2019, he was forced to withhold information in interviews.[10]
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, the first installment of the Anthology Series, was released in December 2016 and was well received both critically and commercially.[11] In August 2017, sources from The Hollywood Reporter reported that an Anthology film centered on Obi-Wan Kenobi starring McGregor was in development by Lucasfilm, with Billy Elliot director Stephen Daldry in early talks to direct and oversee the project.[12] Joel Edgerton, who portrayed Owen Lars in the prequel trilogy, had previously expressed interest on reprising his role in a spin-off film about Kenobi.[13] Once he was hired to helm the film, Daldry contacted Hossein Amini to talk about the possibility of joining the project.[14]
However, all Star Wars stand-alone spin-off films were put on hold following the lower-than-expected box office returns from Solo: A Star Wars Story, the second Anthology film, in May 2018.[11] Four months later, Disney CEO Bob Iger revealed that Lucasfilm had reevaluated its release schedule in the wake of the poor reception of Solo.[15] It was later confirmed that there will be a hiatus on Star Wars following the release of Star Wars: Episode IX The Rise of Skywalker until 2022.[16] Despite this, former UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson was quoted in November 2018 as saying that the filmmakers of the Obi-Wan Kenobi film had proposed shooting it in Northern Ireland.[17] The Hollywood Reporter had previously voted it in a 2016 poll as the most wanted Anthology film by fans.[18]
As a series[edit | edit source]
Announcements in 2019[edit | edit source]
- "I want to get closer and closer to how Obi-Wan felt while Alec Guinness was playing him. I feel like I'm grayer and nearer him in age, so it'll be easier to do that."
- ―Ewan McGregor on playing Obi-Wan in the series
As noted by McGregor, at some point through development, the film project quickly turned into a television series instead.[9] At some point before it turned into a TV series, McGregor participated in a costume test.[19] A television series centered on Obi-Wan Kenobi to be aired on Disney+, Disney's new streaming service, was officially announced by McGregor and Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy at the 2019 D23 Expo after months of rumors and speculation. The series will take place eight years after Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith.[1] During the event, it was also revealed that the episodes had already been written and that production would begin in 2020.[20] Amini and Deborah Chow were later announced as showrunners in StarWars.com.[5]
Announcements in 2020[edit | edit source]
On January 23, 2020, it was reported that the series had been put on hold due to alleged "script problems."[21] However, Ewan McGregor later stated that these rumors were exaggerations, and that production continued as normal. McGregor further stated that while filming was indeed delayed to January 2021, the series' intended release date would remain unaffected.[22] On April 2, 2020, it was reported that John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum writer Joby Harold was hired to write the series, replacing Amini, who left the project back in January.[23] McGregor expects the show to begin filming in spring 2021.[24] On October 9, 2020, Ewan McGregor confirmed while on BBC's The Graham Norton Show that filming was scheduled for March of 2021.[25] According to an April 2020 French press release, the series is currently scheduled to debut in 2022.[26]
On December 10, 2020, more news on the series broke, including confirmation that the series would take place in 9 BBY and the announcement that Hayden Christensen would be reprising his role as Darth Vader for the series. The series' logo was also revealed.[6]
Production[edit | edit source]
- "There are certain cultural things that we can understand right away, and culturally specific things design-wise. Like, "Oh, maybe we shouldn’t do this, but this?" Things that, intuitively, we pick up. It's been an absolute joy working with Deb because she gets it. She's very smart and knows what she wants. I really enjoy that collaboration because now, I feel like, for the Obi-Wan series especially, we have an opportunity to bring a richness to it that hasn't been explored. And I'm working with Chung-hoon [Chung], our director of photography, he's brilliant. He has a wonderful eye."
- ―Doug Chiang
On March 29, 2021, Lucasfilm announced the official cast list for the series which includes: Moses Ingram, Joel Edgerton, Bonnie Maree Piesse, Kumail Nanjiani, Indira Varma, Rupert Friend, O'Shea Jackson Jr., Sung Kang, Simone Kessell, and Benny Safdie. Filming began in April.[4]
In late 2020, the series is said to produced using "The Volume,"[27] a technology previously used for The Mandalorian.[28]
On May 19, 2021, it was revealed that veteran Star Wars concept artist Doug Chiang collaborated with director Deborah Chow on the series, making heavy use of different cultures for new designs. At least six department heads are of Asian American heritage, with Chung-hoon Chung serving as the director of photography.[29]
Credits[edit | edit source]
| Cast | Crew |
Cast
Crew
|
Appearances[edit | edit source]
| Characters | Creatures | Droid models | Events | Locations |
| Organizations and titles | Sentient species | Vehicles and vessels | Weapons and technology | Miscellanea |
Characters
Events
Organizations and titles
Sentient species
Weapons and technology
Miscellanea
Bibliography[edit | edit source]
The Galaxy Far, Far Away Just Got A Little Bigger… on StarWars.com (backup link)- D23 Expo 2019: 8 Things We Learned About Star Wars at the Disney+ Showcase on StarWars.com (backup link)
- Deborah Chow to Direct Obi-Wan Kenobi Series Exclusively on Disney+ on StarWars.com (backup link)
- Brand New Alien From Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Meet Babu Frik on the official Star Wars YouTube channel (backup link)
- "Launchpad"—Star Wars Insider 193
- "Launchpad"—Star Wars Insider 194
- Future Lucasfilm Projects Revealed on StarWars.com (backup link)
- Exciting Lucasfilm Announcements, A New Story From The High Republic, and More! on the official Star Wars YouTube channel (backup link)
- "Launchpad"—Star Wars Insider 200
- Obi-Wan Kenobi Series to Start Production, Cast Revealed on StarWars.com (backup link)
- Obi-Wan Kenobi Series Casting News, The Bad Batch Gets a Trailer, and More! on the official Star Wars YouTube channel (backup link)
- "There is a Strength in Asian Culture": A Conversation with Lucasfilm Legend Doug Chiang on StarWars.com (backup link)
