Star Wars’ Obi-Wan Kenobi Movie Isn’t Happening Anytime Soon, According To Ewan McGregor

McGregor as Obi-Wan

The Star Wars franchise is currently going full speed ahead, starting with The Force Awakens in 2015. With Disney now in charge of the beloved property, there are tons of movies being developed, including main trilogy installments and standalone films. While Solo: A Star Wars Story wasn't the box office success that Lucasfilm was hoping for, a few more spinoffs have been rumored for years. Chief among them is an Obi-Wan Kenobi movie, revealing the time spent between the prequel trilogy and the character's appearance as an old man in A New Hope. Ewan McGregor recently answered his 1,000th question about the possible movie, and had some potentially bad news for the fans:

There's no plans as such to do it, as far as I know. I've been asked this question for years and years. I'd be happy to do it. There must be a good story to tell as they're doing spin-offs -- there's likely to be a good Obi-Wan between me and Alec Guinness.

While Ewan McGregor has consistently expressed his interest in reprising the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi in a possible standalone film, it doesn't seem like Lucasfilm is actually developing the project. Lower your lightsabers, because fans are going to need some Jedi-like patience while we wait for another update.

Ewan McGregor's comments to Express are sure to disappoint the generations of Star Wars fans out there who are waiting for Obi-Wan to return to the silver screen for another adventure. While the character's story was expanded through the Star Wars animated series, the fandom is hoping for McGregor to return to the role, with a movie showing Kenobi's years in Tatooine.

Alas, it seems that Lucasfilm isn't actively seeking out the Obi-Wan Kenobi movie, which makes its future plans with standalone films all the more cryptic. No one from the studio has announced the projects are ending, but there also haven't been any concrete announcements regarding the next Star Wars Story hitting theaters. The focus is currently on Episode IX, which is currently filming, as well as the development of Rian Johnson's trilogy and Jon Favreau's upcoming TV series.

Aside from the Obi-Wan Kenobi movie, there have been a few other standalone projects thrown around as possible blockbusters for the Star Wars franchise. Chief among them is a Boba Fett movie, which would give the fan favorite character a proper backstory after his brief appearance in Attack of the Clones. A Jabba The Hutt movie has also been discussed, which was seemingly set up with the ending of Solo. Alas, we'll have to wait for more information from Lucasfilm.

Star Wars: Episode IX will arrive in theaters on December 20, 2019. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.