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Obi-Wan Kenobi Series Reportedly Being Developed For Disney Plus
An Obi-Wan Kenobi limited series is reportedly being developed for the Disney Plus streaming service. Seemingly since the Mouse House acquired Lucasfilm in 2012, there's been an endless barrage of rumors regarding a project revolving around the popular Jedi. Despite the frequent speculation, nothing was ever officially confirmed, and all Ewan McGregor could do was repeatedly say he'd be happy to return to play the character if asked. Many fans expressed a keen interest in seeing an Obi-Wan spinoff movie, particularly since McGregor's performances in the prequel trilogy were well-liked.
Back in 2017, it looked like an Obi-Wan film was finally taking the necessary steps forward, with director Stephen Daldry reportedly signing on and a working title suggesting a return trip to Tatooine. Plans for this movie allegedly fell apart in the wake of Solo: A Star Wars Story underperforming at the box office, a turn of events that led to Lucasfilm placing all future anthology movies on hold. However, the studio remains keen on bringing Obi-Wan back in some capacity, and they seem to have their sights set on the small screen.
According to Star Wars News Net, Lucasfilm is working on an Obi-Wan limited series for Disney Plus, which could run for as many as six episodes. Apparently, plans were in place for an Obi-Wan film to shoot last year after Solo came out, but the project has since been retooled to reflect the studio's changing strategies in producing new Star Wars content. Disney CEO Bob Iger hinted at a "slowdown" on the movie release schedule following Episode IX this December.
Lucasfilm is going to keep making Star Wars movies in the future, with separate trilogies from David Benioff & D.B. Weiss and (contrary to rumors stating otherwise) Rian Johnson in the pipeline. But they've also made live-action television a key component of their plans moving forward. Already, there are two Star Wars series confirmed for Disney Plus in The Mandalorian and a Rogue One prequel starring Diego Luna's Cassian Andor. It wouldn't be surprising if Lucasfilm was exploring other possibilities for the streaming service, especially if the theatrical films are going to go on hiatus for a while. Disney Plus gives them an outlet for fresh content to keep fans engaged in the interim and tell compelling Star Wars stories that may not be ideal for a blockbuster tentpole. Plausibly, Obi-Wan is going to be a smaller-scale, character-driven drama exploring Kenobi's exile on Tatooine, so Disney Plus sounds like the best home for it.
It's also smart that Obi-Wan is being positioned as a limited series. Much of the character's life has already been covered extensively in various corners of Star Wars canon, indicating there'd only be so much the show could do. During his time on Tatooine, Obi-Wan did help settle the occasional dispute, but largely laid low as a hermit and kept a close eye on Luke Skywalker. There weren't many (if any) opportunities for galaxy-spanning adventures, meaning the Obi-Wan premise could be stretched thin if it went beyond one season. Plus, it could test the waters to see if there'd be interest in a limited series about other legacy characters such as Lando Calrissian, Han Solo, or others.
