There’s been a persistent beating of the fanboy drum for the new Stars Wars cinematic universe to include an Obi-Wan standalone film starring the best thing about the prequels, Ewan McGregor. It’s something Ewan McGregor has repeatedly said he’s on board for. He related his enthusiasm once again today to EW, saying he’d be “happy to do it” if Lucasfilm asked him to return.
“There’s no official offer, and I haven’t met them about it or anything. But I’ve always said that I’d be happy to do it if they wanted to do it. It would be a good segue between the last episode of the prequels and the new episodes. I think they’ve got films to make until the 2020s, so I don’t think it’s going to happen soon if it happens at all.”
Lucasfilm CEO Kathleen Kennedy, for her part, was coy about whether any such Obi-Wan film was in development was was equally cryptic about the unannounced third Anthology film tentatively slated for 2020, though a reveal of that title may be coming this summer, she said (via MTV).
“I think we’re getting close. My hope would be [to announce] sometime around the summer. I never want to predict the creative process because it is its own thing, so we’re in the midst of those discussions right now.”
As you may recall, the third Anthology film was originally going to be the second, a Star Wars standalone based on the galaxy’s bounty hunters, most notably Boba Fett. Josh Trank was lined up to direct and a sizzle reel was ready for the 2015 Star Wars Celebration. Then Fantastic Four happened and the Han Solo movie stepped up as the next spinoff, currently filming under the direction of Phil Lord & Chris Miller. Whether the movie Lucasfilm announces this summer is about the bounty hunter/Boba Fett or Obi-Wan remains up in the air for now.
It seems like a no-brainer to me to bring back the most popular figure from the prequels for one last go-around. There’s some great arc welding that could happen in the film, like how Saw Gerrera popped up in Rogue One after debuting in animation or how Star Wars: Rebels used arc-welding to continue the discontinued Star Wars: The Clone Wars through characters like Ahsoka. Notably, Obi-Wan recently made his return on Rebels, facing down Darth Maul for a final time. Honestly, I wish they’d kept that for this standalone; McGregor and Ray Park trading sword blows again is enticing.
Next up is Star Wars: The Last Jedi on December 15, followed by the untitled Han Solo anthology film on May 25, 2018.
Source: EW
