Rumors Of Beru's Star Wars Comeback Started Years Before Obi-Wan Kenobi
Of all the characters introduced in the "Star Wars" original trilogy, it's hard to think of two who were, for a long time, done a greater disservice than Owen Lars and Beru Whitesun Lars. As the adoptive parents of Luke Skywalker, they're pivotal to the narrative; unfortunately, the stories that were being told post "Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope" didn't require more than a brief drop-in on the Tatooine farmers.
Their best bet at extended screen time came during the prequel trilogy, but, even then, they're just humble desert folk eking out a living while the galaxy succumbs to the fascist tyranny of the Sith. So while it was nice to see a little more of the couple (portrayed in the prequels by Joel Edgerton and Bonnie Piesse), knowing what we thought we knew of Obi-Wan Kenobi's exploits between the prequels and the OT, it seemed like a fairly safe bet that after the handoff of Luke at the conclusion of "Revenge of the Sith," the "Star Wars" saga was done with Owen and Beru.
This changed after Disney acquired Lucasfilm and revived the franchise with the first installment of the sequel trilogy, "Star Wars: Episode VII — The Force Awakens." Suddenly, there were rumors of standalone films exploring the further adventures of Yoda, Boba Fett, and, of course, Obi-Wan. Given that Ewan McGregor was in the sweet spot age-wise to play an aging Kenobi, a return trip to Tatooine was all but certain. This left open the possibility for (most likely) one last appearance by the Lars.
The 2022 Disney+ miniseries "Obi-Wan Kenobi" made good on this promise, which was a welcome development for Piesse, who'd been through a grueling personal ordeal for the last decade.
Bringing depth and dignity, at last, to Beru
In a 2022 interview with ComicBook.com, Piesse revealed that she'd been hearing rumors about Beru getting worked back into the mix for years. She just wasn't sure how the story would be told. "[A]t one point, I heard that there was going to be a movie," she said. All she could do was cross her fingers and wait for her, and hopefully her onscreen spouse's, phone to ring (and hope that Beru's scenes wouldn't get scrapped like the moment cut from "Attack of the Clones"). As Piesse told ComicBook.com:
"[J]oel Edgerton has had an awesome career since we filmed the prequels, so I figured they might want to bring him back, too, and I'm sure they have to bring Beru back. I was hopeful, but I couldn't be happier, really, with how it all came around in a six-part series, and the way it's all done with Deborah Chow directing and everything is really, really special."
Though critics were mixed on "Obi-Wan Kenobi" as a whole (/Film's Ethan Anderton was a fan), it was nice to see Piesse give us a more palpable sense of a character that was, until this point, most memorable for getting burned to a crisp by Stormtroopers. Personally, it was also a familiar role that helped ease her back into acting after taking on the marketing cult NXIVM (you can learn all about her battle in the documentary "The Vow"). Thanks to her performance in "Obi-Wan Kenobi," the next time you watch "A New Hope," her awful fate should slam home harder than ever. This may be the most important thing the miniseries accomplished.