How Ewan McGregor's Work On The Obi-Wan Show Is Being Influenced By Alec Guinness

Obi-Wan Kenobi Star Wars

Disney is moving forward on its Obi-Wan series and, if all goes as planned, filming is set to begin in March. It means the world will get another chance to see Ewan McGregor portray the character made famous by actor Alec Guinness though, this time around, things will be different for the actor.

Ewan McGregor appeared on The Graham Norton Show where, surprise surprise, Star Wars was mentioned. Specifically, McGregor was asked about how the experience will be different now that he's closer in age to where Alec Guinness was when he first played the role, which led the actor into a story about his first time playing Obi-Wan in the prequel trilogy:

The fun thing about doing them in the first place, when I was much younger, was trying to imagine Alec Guinness, how he would play these streams as a younger guy. It led me to watch a lot of his early work, which I hadn't seen before. Brilliant movies, wonderful films he'd been in and I just had such a great time studying him in those movies.

So while it may not have been as obvious that Ewan McGregor channeled Alec Guinness in the original movies, it appears he did a good deal of research. Apparently, that meant comparing the old performances of Guinness to some of his younger work, and I would assume analyzing how a younger Alec Guinness would've portrayed Obi-Wan Kenobi.

McGregor didn't talk in specifics about how his upcoming performance will be influenced by Alec Guinness but did share some of the challenges that lie ahead. It's a challenge he's eager to face, and McGregor is hoping that he does do the actor some justice once again:

This time I’m much closer in age to him, and it will be my challenge to sort of meet him somewhere. I love Alec Guinness. I never got to meet him, but I love him through his work and it's a great honor to try and pretend to be him.

Not a ton is known about Disney+'s Obi-Wan series, though it was revealed it was originally developed to be a movie. Disney is often pretty good at keeping loose lips from sinking ships when it comes to their Disney+ shows so far, but Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker may have had more major spoilers leak than any Star Wars movie to date. Here's hoping the Obi-Wan show can keep the appropriate amount of secrets under the lid, and hopefully, reveal some details on the much-anticipated production when the time is right.

Continue to stick with CinemaBlend for more on the Obi-Wan series, and for a look at what's coming to Disney+. As always, CinemaBlend is also the place for all the latest news happening in television and movies.

Mick Joest
Content Producer

Mick Joest is a Content Producer for CinemaBlend with his hand in an eclectic mix of television goodness. Star Trek is his main jam, but he also regularly reports on happenings in the world of Star Trek, WWE, Doctor Who, 90 Day Fiancé, Quantum Leap, and Big Brother. He graduated from the University of Southern Indiana with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Radio and Television. He's great at hosting panels and appearing on podcasts if given the chance as well.