Ewan McGregor Has Known About The Obi-Wan 'Star Wars' Project "For Four Years"
For years, fans have whipped themselves into a frenzy over rumors of a new Obi-Wan Kenobi project. A project bringing back Ewan McGregor as the noble Jedi Master first appeared on our radars as a rumored movie before the Star Wars prequels star finally put us all out of our miseries this year by confirming that he was returning for an Obi-Wan Kenobi TV series. But it turns out that McGregor could have lessened our suffering a lot sooner. McGregor has apparently known and been attached to the Obi-Wan Kenobi project for years, and had lied to all our faces about it. Will the lies never cease, Ewan McGregor?
Being a part of the Star Wars franchise means you're required to keep a few secrets, but McGregor may have taken that to the next level with the blatant lies he told over the Obi-Wan Kenobi TV series. In an interview with Men's Journal, McGregor revealed that he's been sitting on that he's been sitting on the secret Star Wars project for years, and is relieved that fans finally know about it.
"It's a fucking massive relief," McGregor said. "Because for four years, I've been having to lie to people about it."
Four years! This revelation means that Disney and Lucasfilm have been developing an Obi-Wan project since at least 2015, around the time that rumors started circulating about a standalone Obi-Wan film. That's enough time for someone to go through the entirety of college believing that we would never see McGregor's charismatic, tragic take on the character originated by Alec Guinness ever again. And then, graduating to discover that their entire life is a lie and McGregor is a bold-faced liar. We're onto you, Ewan.
Who knows whether we can trust McGregor again? But now that the secret's out, McGregor is pretty chatty about the project (or is he lying again?), revealing that the series will be six one-hour episodes that will take place between the events of Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope:
"The storyline sits between 'Episode III' and 'Episode IV.' The Jedi Order was falling apart. It will be interesting to take a character we know in a way and show him—Well, his arc will be quite interesting, I think, dealing with that the fact that all the Jedi were slaughtered with the end of 'Episode III.' It's quite something to get over."
This series will pick up with an older, more wizened Obi-Wan who has seen and participated in his share of tragedy. Thus, this portrayal of Obi-Wan will veer a little closer to Guinness' depiction of the character in A New Hope, McGregor revealed. "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," he said.
The yet-untitled Obi-Wan Kenobi series will begin filming in summer 2020, according to McGregor. We don't know any other concrete details about the series except that The Mandalorian director Deborah Chow is set to helm the series. Though I guess we can count on McGregor to keep quiet about them until the series premieres on Disney+, likely in 2021. He's done a good job of keeping secrets so far.