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SYFY WIRE obi-wan kenobi

Everything we know so far about the Obi-Wan series on Disney+

By Donnie Lederer
Obi-Wan

The Rise of Skywalker has been released, closing the curtain on the Skywalker Saga. However, thanks to Disney+, there's a lot more Star Wars on the horizon — and some of it has a whole lot to do with that famous Jedi clan.

The first of three announced live-action series, The Mandalorian, has already wrapped up its first season, and the streaming service will offer a series about Rogue One's Cassian Andor in the next year or two. Perhaps the most intriguing series, though, is based on one of the most famous Jedi of all: Obi-Wan Kenobi — and Ewan McGregor is set to reprise the role. Here's what SYFY WIRE knows so far.

THE BASICS

So far, there is no premiere date or episode count for the series. Kathleen Kennedy announced at this year's D23 Expo that all the scripts have been written, and filming for the series will begin in 2020. Currently, McGregor is the only announced cast member.

WHAT'S IT ABOUT?

The specifics about the series are still a little hush-hush, but we do know the time in which it takes place.

"The storyline sits between Episode III and Episode IV," McGregor told Men’s Journal, "when 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 the fact that all the Jedi were slaughtered with the end of Episode III. It's quite something to get over."

When we see Kenobi in Episode IV, Alec Guinness portrayed him as a man who had made peace with what had happened to him, and is watching over Luke from afar on Tatooine, waiting to train him to carry on the fight. Seeing the struggle for him to get to this point will be fascinating to watch.

Writer Hossein Amini added in an interview with Discussing Film, "It's fascinating in the sense that it's a period where there is a lot of change in the galaxy and a lot of hardship. So, for Obi-Wan's character, he has a lot to adjust to given the loss of his close friends and the order that he believed in."

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Catherine Chow (The Mandalorian, American Gods) will serve as the director for the series, and the aforementioned Hossein Amini is taking on writing duties. Kathleen Kennedy, Chow, Jason D. McGatlin, Tracey Seaward, and John Swartz will help produce the series.

McGregor has stated on many occasions how it's such a relief to stop "lying" to fans about the series. "It's been four years of saying, 'Well, I don't know,'" he said at D23. "Now I can say, 'Yes, we're going to do it.'"

SPECULATION

We know when the show will take place, not what happens. Based on what we know from Episode III and IV, Obi-Wan lives in seclusion on Tatooine. It doesn't necessarily mean he stays on Tatooine the entire time. There's also the question of Joel Edgerton and Bonnie Piesse. Will they return as Owen and Beru? In Episode IV, you could see the tension with Owen when Luke brought up "Old Ben." We'd like to see what brought it to this level.

UPDATES

January 1:

As reported by LRM, Daniel Ritchman is saying Lucasfilm is reportedly looked for a young actor to portray Luke Skywalker in the series. Should the character be cast, the actor portraying him will give fans even more insight as to the actual timeline of the show and what the plot will be. If you're going to include Luke, you might as well use him, right? 

April 2:

Variety is reporting Joby Harold will be taking over writing duties for the series from Hossein Amini, who left in January. The executive producer of John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum, this is Harold's first foray into series writing.

We can guarantee there will be plenty of Obi-Wan news to come in the next few months, and you'll be able to find it all right here on SYFY WIRE.