Ewan McGregor Says Obi-Wan Kenobi Series Is Not on Hold, but Has 'Been Pushed Back' Over Scripts
The Obi-Wan Kenobi series at Disney+ is still a go, according to star Ewan McGregor.
The actor, who is set to reprise his role of the famed Star Wars Jedi Knight, has addressed recent rumors about the status of the project after multiple outlets reported that it had been put on hold while the the scripts get an overhaul.
Per The Hollywood Reporter, production company Lucasfilm is searching for a new writer to pen the series, which could be reconfigured from six episodes to four. McGregor and director Deborah Chow (who directed season 1 of the hit Disney+ series The Mandalorian) are said to still be attached. Collider first reported the news.
“It’s not been put on hold, it’s just been pushed back a little bit,” he told the Associated Press on Thursday at a Los Angeles event for his new film Birds of Prey. “The scripts are excellent and they just want them to be better.”
“So we just pushed it back, but it’s not — it’s very dramatic, it would seem, online, there’s all kinds of s— online about it, but it’s only just slid back a bit,” he continued. “We’re still shooting it, I think it will still be aired when it was meant to be and I’m really excited about it. It’ll be fun to play again.”
The highly anticipated spin-off series was announced at Disney’s D23 Expo last August, with McGregor, 48, appearing on stage to confirm the news himself.
The actor famously starred as the beloved Obi-Wan Kenobi in the three Star Wars prequels: The Phantom Menace, Revenge of the Sith and Attack of the Clones.
During an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show last fall, McGregor admitted that keeping the project a secret was a struggle.
“It’s awkward,” he said. “The studio and the franchises, they want to keep everything totally secret, of course, which I understand, but as the person being asked over and over and over again, ‘Would you do it again?’ And I’m already talking to them about it, but I can’t say that I am.”
He added that the more he was asked about the possibility of reprising the role, the harder it became to lie.
“For four years, I was saying, ‘Well, I’d be happy to do it again! I’m just waiting for the call.’ But all the while, it was embarrassing!” he said. “Lying!”
