Ewan McGregor's dedication to embodying Obi-Wan Kenobi has lasted 22 years and outlasted poor reception.
The Golden Globe winner discussed the role with The Hollywood Reporter under the guise of the upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi due next year, and he couldn't be happier to head up the Disney Plus series named after his character.
"I'm really excited about it," McGregor told Seth Abramovitch. "Maybe more so than the first ones, because I'm older—I just turned 50—and I'm just in a much better place."
The Scottish actor debuted as the Jedi Master in 1999's Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace and continued his portrayal through Attack of the Clones (2002) and Revenge of the Sith (2005). All three were not warmly welcomed by critics and fans alike, with the highest Tomatometer score amongst them being Revenge of the Sith's 80 percent.
"[It] was hard they didn't get well received," McGregor admitted. "That was quite difficult. They were universally not very much liked."
This time around, he said, there has been months of "these monster, two-and-a-half sessions of sword fights and hand-to-hand stuff."
Obi-Wan details have slowly trickled in, including a March 29 cast reveal:
The incredible cast includes Ewan McGregor, Hayden Christensen, Moses Ingram, Joel Edgerton, Bonnie Piesse, Kumail Nanjiani, Indira Varma, Rupert Friend, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Sung Kang, Simone Kessell and Benny Safdie. pic.twitter.com/UGv66IpzbH
— Disney+ (@disneyplus) March 29, 2021
According to Disney (h/t IndieWire), "The story begins 10 years after the dramatic events of ‘Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith’ where Kenobi faced his greatest defeat: the downfall and corruption of his best friend and Jedi apprentice, Anakin Skywalker, turned evil Sith Lord Darth Vader."
The six-episode project—written by Hossein Amini (Drive ) and directed by Deborah Chow ( The Mandalorian)—does not yet have a release date.
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