Time for a rewatch of The Queen's Gambit.
The road to the Disney+ show Obi-Wan Kenobi has been a circuitous one. As far back as 2014, Disney has been rumored to be working on a story centered around the character, with rumors first of a trilogy of movies and then a standalone "Star Wars Story" film. When Disney+ was announced, the rumors turned to a TV series, which Lucasfilm confirmed at D23 in 2019. Starring Ewan McGregor, who played the character in the prequel films, the Disney+ Obi-Wan Kenobi limited series is finally heading to a galaxy close to us in 2022.
Like Boba Fett, Obi-Wan has long been a popular character since the original 1970s-era films. Played then by the legendary Sir Alec Guinness, Obi-Wan was a complicated figure who famously told the truth "from a certain point of view." The prequels dramatized his backstory, starting with McGregor's much younger Obi-Wan as a padawan, who ultimately believes he can train a young boy named Anakin, despite everyone around him warning otherwise, only to see the boy grow up to be Darth Vader.
The new series promises to fill in some of the story between Anakin's fall at the end of the prequels and Obi-Wan's fateful meeting with Luke in A New Hope. Here's what's known so far:
Obi-Wan Kenobi Trailer
On March 9, as part of Disney’s 2022 Investor Day presentation, the Obi-Wan Kenobi trailer finally arrived. Not only did it finally give fans a look at the stage of Obi-Wan’s life between the prequels and the original trilogy, but fans got a look at 10-year-old Luke Skywalker. They also got to meet Reva, the show’s main antagonist, played by The Queen’s Gambit’s Moses Ingram, and Indira Varma (Game of Thrones) who plays a deadly looking Imperial officer. And there’s a look at the latest droid sidekick, who fans believe will be voiced by Kumail Nanjiani. Eagle-eyed viewers noted the letters on the droid’s callsign read “N.E.D.”
Obi-Wan Kenobi Filming Updates
Obi-Wan Kenobi was announced in 2019 as an upcoming six-part limited series on Disney+. But any plans to begin filming were delayed when the 2020 Hollywood shutdown put all productions on hold.
Fans didn't hear more until December 2020, at the Disney Investor Day presentation. Since the show had not yet begun filming, the teaser was merely a title reveal, with graphics that hinted at the sands of Tatooine, where Obi-Wan eventually settles.
Filming finally moved forward in 2021, with Ewan McGregor confirming production had wrapped in September 2021. The first official footage is rumored to be part of a larger Lucasfilm-centric trailer that will debut during the 2022 Super Bowl.
Obi-Wan Kenobi Cast
The Disney Investor Day presentation revealed the second primary cast member alongside McGregor: Hayden Christensen, who played Anakin Skywalker in the prequel films. This announcement all but confirmed that Obi-Wan and Darth Vader would be once again going head to head. On March 1, 2021, Disney announced Indira Varma (Game of Thrones) would round out the primary cast in what looked to be the role of Obi-Wan's love interest.
On March 29, the rest of the cast was also announced. On the returnee side, Joel Edgerton and Bonnie Piesse were announced. Although it was not confirmed, fans assume they will will reprise their roles as the younger versions of Luke's Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru from the prequels.
As for the other cast member, Moses Ingram (The Queen's Gambit) plays the show’s main antagonist, a force-sensitive Inquisitor named Reva. Rupert Friend (Homeland) is her boss, known only as the Grand Inquisitor. (The character was originally introduced in the animated Star Wars: Rebels.) Fans also spotted another Inquisitor from Star Wars Rebels, known as the Fifth Brother, who looks to be played by Sung Kang of the Fast & Furious franchise.
There are also several actors whose characters have not been confirmed. They include Kumail Nanjiani (The Eternals), O'Shea Jackson Jr. (Godzilla: King of the Monsters), Benny Safdie (Uncut Gems), and Simone Kessell (Wonderland). However, it is rumored Nanjiani is voicing the new Droid sidekick.
Obi-Wan Kenobi Plot
Obi-Wan Kenobi will take place 10 years after Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, when Anakin Skywalker was remade into Darth Vader by the Emperor. Notably, this is the same point in the chronology as another recent Star Wars film, Solo: A Star Wars Story. The series will explore what Obi-Wan was doing during this period during the Emperor's control of the Galaxy and Darth Vader's rise. Meanwhile, Luke and Leia live different childhoods — one as a 10-year-old farm boy, the other as a princess.
Obi-Wan Kenobi Release Date
Obi-Wan Kenobi was set to premiere on May 25, but has since been pushed back slightly. The series is officially set to premiere on May 27, 2022, two days after 45th anniversary of the original release of Star Wars in 1977, with two episodes.
All nine films in the Star Wars Skywalker Saga are streaming on Disney+, along with both Rogue One and Solo: A Star Wars Story. Both seasons of The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett are also streaming now.
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