Ever since it was announced that anthology films would be produced based on beloved Star Wars characters, Star Wars fans everywhere have been eager to learn just what characters would be receiving the solo film treatment. The announcement of a Han Solo film was met with trepidation, and the lukewarm performance of Solo: A Star Wars Story at the box office had many wondering whether the anthology films would be a good idea.
But even if Han Solo’s origin story was met with a tepid response, fans have continued to express interest in learning more about yet another beloved, storied figure of Star Wars mythology: Obi-Wan Kenobi. Rumors of an Obi-Wan standalone film have been swirling around since the solo films were first announced years ago, and it’s been hard to keep track of what’s been confirmed so far and what hasn’t.
Here’s everything we know so far about the film, including who may be involved, and what an early story idea is rumored to be.
We may have a vague idea of the storyline
No official story has been released for a prospective film about the Jedi Master responsible for the training of both Anakin and Luke Skywalker, but back in May 2018, a potential storyline was first teased by TMZ. According to their early report, the storyline could potentially be the following:
But the idea was almost immediately questioned by Twitter user @clubjade, who highlighted the fact that this storyline is almost a verbatim copy of an old Legends novel featuring the storied Jedi Master.
Northern Ireland may be where filming takes place
The United Kingdom has long been home to much of the filming of the Star Wars franchise. Pinewood Studios has housed the production of many entries in the saga, with locations in neighboring Ireland entering into the fray for production of both The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi.
If early rumors are to be believed regarding the possible Obi-Wan Kenobi film, it seems that the United Kingdom will continue to provide the Star Wars saga and its many anthology films a home base for filming. Reports have suggested that Northern Ireland will provide a key location for filming for the Obi-Wan anthology entry, with capital Belfast in particular being singled out in these reports, and a production date as early as 2019 mentioned.
It could possibly launch on Disney+
Disney’s streaming service has been a project long in the making. While we still don’t know much about Disney+, we do have a few ideas about what to expect in terms of Star Wars content. There are at least two live-action Star Wars series coming to the service: The Mandalorian, and an as of yet unnamed series about Rogue One’s Cassian Andor.
But if an early rumor is to be believed, there’s a chance that the Obi-Wan Kenobi standalone movie could be headed to Disney+, too. Of course, we’re still a ways out from the official launch of the streaming service, and so little is known about the film at this point, too. But the potential of a big Star Wars movie launching on the streamer is exciting, to say the least.
Qui-Gon could possibly feature in a potential film
In The Phantom Menace, the relationship between Obi-Wan Kenobi and his Master, Qui-Gon Jinn, is one of the few things that actually works. Acting as one of the film’s few emotional centers, the relationship carries on into the final film of the prequel trilogy, Revenge of the Sith, as Obi-Wan expresses interest in learning to commune with his since deceased Master.
Expanded universe novels continue to explore the dynamic between the two, but Liam Neeson himself has expressed interest in returning to the role. Although he acknowledged in January 2018 that he’d not been approached about a possible Obi-Wan film, the actor did seem intrigued about a possible return to Qui-Gon’s role.
Then again, this all took place before Neeson’s now infamous interview. So… maybe we’ve seen the last of Qui-Gon after all.
A director was once attached, but his status remains unclear
In August 2017, the Obi-Wan Kenobi anthology film gained some real traction when it was revealed that Stephen Daldry, the director behind films including Billy Elliot, The Hours, and Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, was reportedly attached to direct the new film. Daldry, who has also executive produced the Netflix hit The Crown, certainly would have brought some real gravitas to the project, as a director with a very impressive, very British, and very serious body of work.
But in the summer of 2018, rumors began to circulate that Daldry was no longer attached to the project at all, if he ever had been. As of February 2019, we don’t know much more than what was once believed. IMDb continues to list the project on Daldry’s profile, but it should also be noted that anyone has access to editing IMDb. Reliable though the site often is, we can’t take this connection for granted.
George Lucas may somehow be involved again
George Lucas may not have been involved with the making of recent Star Wars films, following the sale of Lucasfilm to Disney. But an early rumor suggests there’s a slight chance the father of all things Star Wars could be returning to a galaxy far, far away for the sake of making the standalone Obi-Wan film.
A report from the Belfast Telegraphin February 2018 claimed that Lucas himself was spotted in Northern Ireland, receiving a tour of Paint Hall Studios: “It was all very low key, only a few people knew that the old guy walking round the set was George Lucas. It was only when we were told about Star Wars coming here next year that it dawned on us that was why he was here.”
We don’t know for sure that it’s still happening…
At the moment, it’s unclear what the future of Disney/Lucasfilm’s Star Wars saga will be, following the release of Episode IX in December 2019. With the previously planned Boba Fett film canceled, it became clear that things would start to slow down for the franchise, even though other projects - such as an additional trilogy from Rian Johnson, and a series from D. B. Weiss and David Benioff - are still works in progress.
But as the focus shifts away from anthology films like Solo and Rogue One, the truth of the matter is that we don’t know for sure that the Obi-Wan film will ever see the light of day. No official announcement has been made either way, but as of now, it seems like the film may be in exile.
…but Ewan McGregor still wants it to happen just as much as we do
If there’s one person who’s been on board with the idea of an Obi-Wan Kenobi anthology movie from the very beginning, it’s the man behind Obi-Wan himself, Ewan McGregor. For years now, McGregor has expressed interest in the idea of returning to Obi-Wan’s role, and he’s been fairly routinely questioned about it whenever he has any other project to promote.
As recently as July 2018, during promotion for his film Christopher Robin, McGregor stated, “I don’t know anything more about it than you do I’m afraid to say. I really don’t, but I’d be up for it. You know that.” So while the state of the standalone films may be more in flux than ever at this point, McGregor is just as on board as he ever was. Here’s to hoping he one day gets to return to fill the beloved character’s Jedi robes.
