Star Wars: Obi-Wan delayed till 2021

Last Updated on: 25 January, 2020 | 2:25 AM

The star Ewan McGregor says that the online drama surrounding the live-action Star Wars series is bullsh-t, refuting the reports that Obi-Wan is indefinitely delayed. He spoke to the press at the premiere of Warner Bros’ Birds of Prey (And The Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) and clarified that the shooting start simply has been pushed from August to next January. He added that the reported clashes over creative differences are not true. He said, “It’s not as nearly as dramatic as it sounds online” and added Disney-owned Lucasfilm “pushed the shoot to the beginning of next year.” McGregor said, “The scripts are really good. I saw 90% of the writing and I really liked it, All this bulls— about creative differences and all that stuff, none of it is true. We just pushed the dates … last episode, [Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker] came out, everyone had more time to read the stuff that had been written, and they felt that they wanted to do more work on it.” He adds up to this, “So they slid the shoot. It’s not nearly as dramatic as it sounds online. I think they want to keep the same release date so it’s not really gonna affect the viewer in any way,” he said. “It just simply gives them more time to write and make the scripts even better.” According to McGregor, the Obi-Wan series is on track for its January 2021 shooting start.

The Media Coverage

An initial report from Collider claims that the series was indefinitely delayed. The Hollywood Reporter noted on Thursday, that Obi-Wan was on hold and undergoing a retooling. It added that Lucasfilm was looking to replace original scribe, Hossein Amini. According to this very report, a source close to the production claimed that there were concerns that the series was too similar to The Mandalorian. This is because McGregor’s exiled Jedi is tasked with serving as the faithful protector of a young Luke Skywalker. It also reflects Pedro Pascal’s armoured bounty hunter acting as the self-appointed guardian of a Force-sensitive child, aka Baby Yoda.

Sources have also confirmed The Hollywood Reporter that the series was being reconfigured, being dropped from six episodes to four. The Jon Favreau-created the Mandalorian ran for eight episodes.

McGregor tells Comicbook.com, “I haven’t heard that” when he was asked about the cut episodes.

Watch the trailer of Obi-Wan KENOBI Disney+ (2020): A Star Wars Story