Disney
Ewan McGregor wants to keep playing Obi-Wan Kenobi
Ewan McGregor wants to keep playing Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars universe. Disney and Lucasfilm, however, aren’t “ready” for it.
After first portraying iconic Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi in 1999’s Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, Ewan McGregor went on to reprise the role in the following two sequels and again in a divisive 2022 miniseries on Disney+, which currently marks the last time he’s starred as the character.
In a new interview with E! while on the press tour for his new film The End of Oak Street, McGregor opened up about his desire to return to the role and even detailed the story he’d like to tell.
Ewan McGregor says he’s desperate to return as Obi-Wan Kenobi but Disney isn’t ‘ready’ for it
“I’m ready whenever they are. They just seem to not be ready, but I’m up for it,” McGregor said, before laying out exactly the story he wants to tell.
The Obi-Wan Kenobi series ended with Kenobi walking off into the Tatooine desert, having decided to step back from Luke Skywalker’s life and let him have a normal childhood with Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru.
Qui-Gon Jinn’s Force ghost, played by Liam Neeson, returns, and the two wander off together, which is where McGregor would like to pick up the story — in between that moment and A New Hope.
“At the end of the Obi-Wan series, I’m walking off into the desert and I’ve decided to leave. I’ve realized I can’t keep the pressure on Luke. I realized he has to have his own childhood, so I leave him with Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru. And I wander off… and Qui-Gon’s back. And we go off… but where are we going?” McGrgeor explained.
“What happens between those two moments is what I want to do and spend the rest of my career doing these stories. Stories, you know, series or movies. We’ve got plenty of time.”
The acclaimed Scottish actor also joked that he’s only got another decade until he’s the age Alec Guinness was when he first portrayed the legendary character in the original Star Wars.
“I’ve got 10 years before I am Alec Guinness’s age. So come on, Disney!”
After spending much of the 2020s making series for Disney+ — Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, Andor, Ahsoka, The Acolyte, Skeleton Crew, and more — Lucasfilm looks to be pivoting away from that M.O., as The Mandalorian & Grogu, released back in May, represented the franchise’s first theatrical film since 2019.
Star Wars will continue on the big screen next year with the release of the Shawn Levy-directed Star Wars: Starfighter, which features Ryan Gosling in the lead role. Disney must be liking what the pair have cooked up thus far, as the duo was also announced as the star and director of a Ghost Rider film for Marvel Studios.