McGregor paints an auspicious picture about the Obi-Wan Kenobi series in a podcast interview with Empire, which is the latest example of the dribs and drabs of updates that have been slowly surfacing about the long-gestating project. Indeed, set to work under the auspices of director Deborah Chow (The Mandalorian, Lost in Space), the actor is clearly excited to return to the role he played in the 1999-2005 Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, continuing to build upon a legacy started by Alec Guinness’s portrayal in the Original Trilogy. As McGregor lauds of his impending return: The update arrives shortly after a seemingly off-the-cuff comment to ET Online in which McGregor expressed his (for now unconfirmed) belief that the Obi-Wan Kenobi series will be a single-season event, stating, “As I understand, it’s a standalone season. We’ll see. Who knows?” Yet, possible limited nature of the series notwithstanding, McGregor’s elated Empire comments also point to the technical breakthroughs the show will utilize, which stand in contrast to industry standards from when he last played Obi-Wan; something that should excite cynical Star Wars fans who remain unimpressed by the artificial nature of the prequels’ blue-screen-centric visuals. As he explains: While McGregor’s excitement over reprising Obi-Wan can be attributed to the 15 years that have passed since the release of climactic 2005 Star Wars Prequel Trilogy closer Revenge of the Sith, it might also be explained by the delays that have hit the project. After all, it was initially set as a theatrically-aimed feature film; a plan that was eventually nixed after the underwhelming performance of 2018’s Solo: A Star Wars Story exposed the finitude of the franchise’s box office clout. Thusly, the project took shape as a serial offering for the Disney+ streaming platform, as confirmed at the D23 Expo back in August 2019 with the official announcement of the Obi-Wan series and McGregor’s return. However, the series hit a snag in January 2020 with the dismissal of writer Hossein Amini, resulting in the heralded production being put on hold until January 2021; a move that actually proved fortuitous with the eventual COVID outbreak. While the following April saw Disney tap Amini’s screenwriting replacement, Joby Harold (Army of the Dead, Underground), the project was put in stasis as the script was rewritten. That, however, is the extent of what is known about the currently-untitled Disney+ Obi-Wan Kenobi series. With the long-set rescheduled production start of January 2021 still hopefully on track to avoid any COVID-caused complications, it shouldn’t be much longer until we see McGregor fill some crucial gaps in the arc of the eventual sagely desert hermit destined to help Luke Skywalker take his first step into a larger world. In the meantime, your next Star Wars serial fix is imminent with The Mandalorian Season 2 set to hit Disney+ on October 30.
