It’s official: Ewan McGregor is a Jedi once more. The veteran actor has agreed to slip back into Obi-Wan Kenobi’s robe for a limited series set to premiere on Disney+.
Confirmation of the long-rumored project came during the Disney+ presentation at Disney’s D23 convention, which runs August 23-25. According to McGregor, who appeared on stage at the event, the series will be four hours long, and will take place during the same time frame as Solo. All of the scripts have been written, and production begins in 2020.
The series confirmation follows years of rumors regarding a potential Obi-Wan solo project, including a possible feature film. Reportedly, Solo‘s disappointing box office returns scuttled plans for a big-screen Obi-Wan movie. It’s not clear if the upcoming Disney+ series is a reworking of Lucasfilm’s previous project or something brand new.
In the past, McGregor has said that he’s been open to reprising the role, which was originally played by Alec Guinness in the first Star Wars movie. McGregor played Obi-Wan in all three of George Lucas’ controversial prequel films, and last appeared as the Jedi master in 2005’s Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith. The Obi-Wan show will be one of a number Star Wars projects slated for Disney+, including the live-action drama The Mandalorian and an untitled series starring Rogue One‘s Cassian Andor.
Previously, a report by TMZ indicated that Oscar-nominated director Stephen Daldry (Billy Elliot, The Crown) would helm and write the Obi-Wan movie. TMZ also provided a glimpse of the movie’s potential plot. The film reportedly would’ve focused on Kenobi’s time as a hermit on Tatooine watching over a young Luke Skywalker. When a war breaks out between the desert planet’s moisture farmers and vicious Tusken Raider tribes, Obi-Wan is forced to come out of hiding and intervene. Luke’s adopted parents, Beru and Owen Lars, were also set to appear in the film.
Kenobi is easily one of the franchise’s most beloved characters. He trained Anakin Skywalker, who ultimately turned on Kenobi and the Jedi Order and became Darth Vader. After Anakin’s betrayal, Kenobi goes into hiding on the desert planet Tatooine, where he quietly watches over Anakin’s son, Luke, until he is ready to follow his own Jedi path.
Aside from the Obi-Wan series, there’s plenty of Star Wars action on the horizon. Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker will premiere on December 20, The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson is working on his own trilogy of films, and Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss will launch the first film in their Star Wars series in 2022.
Updated on August 23, 2019: Added official confirmation of the Obi-Wan TV series.
By: Digital Trend
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