Obi-Wan Kenobi Limited Series Rumored For Disney+
We already know Disney and Lucasfilm are working on two new live-action Star Wars shows. The Mandalorian is expected to hit Disney+ later this year, and a Rogue One prequel series focusing on Diego Luna's character Cassian Andor is also in the works. But now a character who fans have long wanted to see in spin-off story might be headed to Disney's streaming service as well.
A new rumor floating around says an Obi-Wan Kenobi limited series might be in the works for Disney+, and it's a "top priority" for the House of Mouse. Considering all the times Ewan McGregor has been asked whether he'd like to return as the Jedi Master, and how often the rumor has popped up for him to lead his own film series, this sounds like a fairly satisfying development.
StarWarsNewsNet has word on the Obi-Wan Kenobi TV series, and since their sources are usually pretty reliable, we're inclined to believe them. Apparently this project is born of an idea that was originally intended to be a movie. But after Solo: A Star Wars Story ended up being a disappointment at the box office, Disney and Lucasfilm seem to think it might be better suited for a streaming series instead. After all, we heard that the Obi-Wan project may have been canned while pre-production was just starting.
This makes perfect sense for Disney and Lucasfilm. By taking the spin-off stories to Disney+, the expectations aren't nearly as high. That doesn't mean these Star Wars shows have to be cheap, but with a guaranteed flow of revenue through monthly Disney+ subscriptions, there's less pressure to deliver a huge box office haul.
However, I find myself wondering exactly how they're going to fill a six episode limited series about Obi-Wan Kenobi. If the original idea for the spin-off was only going to be a single movie, then they'll have to pad it out for six episodes. Even if those episodes are only 45 minutes each instead of a full hour, that's still four and a half hours of story to fill. Perhaps they're taking several movies and trimming them down to six episodes of television instead. After all, there had previously been rumors of an Obi-Wan Kenobi trilogy, so that would make sense too.
As of now, there's no indication as to how quickly the Obi-Wan Kenobi TV series could get off the ground, especially since it hasn't been officially announced yet by Lucasfilm. But maybe there's news coming just around the corner with Star Wars Celebration happening in April. With the first footage from The Mandalorian likely arriving at the convention, Lucasfilm would be smart to follow the wave of excitement with the announcement of another new show about a fan-favorite character.