Liam Neeson Returning As Qui-Gon Jinn For New Star Wars Series, Our Scoop Confirmed
He's back!
This article is more than 2 years old
It wasn’t that long ago that Liam Neeson was saying that while he might be willing to reprise the role of Qui-Gon Jinn in a movie, he had no intention of doing so in a TV series. The quote dashed a lot of hopes, including from those who have been hoping to get at least a cameo from Neeson in Obi-Wan Kenobi. Well, it’s finally been confirmed that — just as we exclusively reported a year ago — Neeson will again play Qui-Gon Jinn, and regardless of his earlier words, it will be on Disney+.
As reported by Murphy’s Multiverse and others, Liam Neeson is returning to voice Qui-Gon Jinn for the upcoming animated series Tales of the Jedi. The show is an anthology series that will feature stories of different force-wielding Star Wars characters like Qui-Gon, Ahsoka, and Count Dooku in different points in their lives. Along with Liam Neeson voicing an adult version of Qui-Gon, there will be a younger version of the character voiced by his real life son.
This will no doubt add fuel to speculation that Liam Neeson could make an appearance in Obi-Wan Kenobi. Along with flashbacks, there is always the possibility of Qui-Gon appearing as a Force ghost. At the end of Revenge of the Sith, Yoda tells Obi-Wan he has training for the Jedi to complete that will allow him to commune with Qui-Gon from beyond the grave. SPOILERS for the Obi-Wan Kenobi premiere — in the first episode of the series, we see Obi-Wan call out to his master on Tattooine but with no answer. We aren’t told if he’s ever succeeded in speaking to Qui-Gon or not, but overall we are meant to infer that Obi-Wan’s connection to the Force has weakened since last we saw him.
Beyond animated roles and a possible cameo in Obi-Wan Kenobi, we probably shouldn’t bet too much money on the notion of Liam Neeson playing a live-action Qui-Gon Jinn very many times. In a little over a week, the Taken star will officially be in his seventies and de-aging him for an entire series or live-action film seems unlikely.
Of course, that said, Liam Neeson doesn’t seem ready to leave acting any time soon and most of his roles continue to be action oriented. In fact, he recently walked back statements that he was ready to retire from the industry by saying that he had been joking. The actor’s list of upcoming projects certainly seems to reflect that. He’ll soon be starring in the thriller Retribution with Matthew Modine as well as the neo-noir mystery Marlowe as the titular detective. Filming on In the Land of Saints and Sinners began in March, with Neeson starring as a retired assassin along with Ciarán Hinds (Game of Thrones). The film gives Neeson a chance to once again work with The Marksman director Robert Lorenz.
As to whether or not Liam Neeson will ultimately show up as one of those glowy force ghosts in Obi-Wan Kenobi, we’ll be keeping our eyes out. The next episode of the series streams this Friday, June 3.
