Entertainment Weekly have released a fascinating in-depth look at the development of Obi-Wan Kenobi with interviews with actors Ewan McGregor, Moses Ingram, and Hayden Christensen, Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy, show writer Joby Harold, and director Deborah Chow.
Ewan McGregor on the return of Darth Vader:
“I came round the set, and it was just this ring of people standing around.”
Not quite sure what all the commotion was about, a confused McGregor took his position in the frame — a look of puzzlement on his face not seen since the nefarious Count Dooku dropped a Sith Lord truth bomb on the Jedi Master back on Geonosis. “I had the cameras behind me looking down this street, and behind the cameras were 100 people standing there,” recalls McGregor. “They’re usually in places doing work, not just standing. I couldn’t quite work out what was happening.”
It wasn’t Obi-Wan they were there to see. “And then Vader comes around the corner, into the street, and I was like, ‘Ah, f—. Of course!'”
Hayden Christensen on being Darth Vader.
“The whole experience was very surreal,” Christensen adds of putting the suit back on. But while everyone on set was marveling in his direction, the man behind the mask was moved by what he saw through his tinted helmet lenses: “The first time that I saw Ewan as Obi-Wan again, that was a very special moment for me, and one that I’ll remember for a very, very long time.” The battle had officially been joined.
Joby Harold on what he aimed to achieve with series:
The six-episode series focuses on that journey from pain to at least a modicum of peace. “When we last saw Obi-Wan in the prequels, he’s very emotional,” says Harold. “There’s a passion to him. And when we get to see him again in A New Hope, he is the Zen master. That was the story that I wanted to understand — what had happened to Obi-Wan between the guy that Ewan had brought to life and the guy that Sir Alec Guinness brought to life.”
Kathleen Kennedy on bringing Vader back:
“The debate around whether we should do that or not carried on for quite some time,” Kennedy reveals.” Everybody within our creative team has strong opinions, and all of our fans have strong opinions. So when you realize that you’re under that level of scrutiny, certainly a story point like that is going to be scrutinized at a very high level. We talked about it constantly.”
Moses Ingram on playing Reva:“Reva is a boss,” Ingram says emphatically, speaking to EW just a few days after finishing a series of physically demanding reshoots. “I mean, really like a full-on athlete. She is on a mission and will conquer that at all costs when given the opportunity. She is pretty badass.” (And with a badass outfit: “Putting on a cape was a dream I didn’t know I had. I felt like I was 10 again! It was super dope.”)
“All of that falls within the Mandalorian timeline,” Kennedy says of potential crossover characters, while Chow adds that “the strongest connective tissue for us is to the prequels, because that’s where our characters are coming from and that’s where their stories started. So, really, the prequels are the most connected to our series.”
Kennedy on more Obi-Wan:
“It’s certainly something we talk about,” Kennedy says of a possible extension, “mainly because everybody came together and had such an incredible time. Ewan had an incredible time. Hayden had an incredible time. So certainly from that point of view, everybody involved would love to see this not end. But we have to really spend our time asking the question: Why would we do it? If we were to decide to do anything more with the Obi-Wan character, we’d have to really answer the question why?
For the full in-depth article, head over to Entertainment Weekly.
- Hardcover Book
- Insight Editions (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 304 Pages - 05/24/2022 (Publication Date) - Insight Editions (Publisher)
