Ewan McGregor’s Obi-Wan Series Was Almost Too Sad For Disney
The upcoming Obi-Wan series starring Ewan McGregor had to be changed because the first run of it was simply too bleak.
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Love them or hate them, many fans can agree that the shining light of the Star Wars prequel trilogy was the Ewan McGregor take as Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi. Ever since Disney acquired Star Wars, fans have been clamoring for McGregor’s return. Thanks to the profound success of Star Wars shows on Disney+ such as The Mandolorian, fans have got their wish. On May 25th, the Obi-Wan Kenobi limited series will debut on the streamer. However, news has come to light via Gizmodo and other outlets that significant script re-writes were needed as the original story of the show was too dark.
According to the big boss at Lucas Film Kathleen Kennedy, the original six scripts were “too bleak.” This revelation came in a piece with Entertainment Weekly, where Kennedy went on to say; “You can’t just wave the magic wand with any writer and arrive at a story that necessarily reflects what you want to feel-We’re looking, ultimately, to make a hopeful and uplifting story.” This change in tone saw a delay in the production of the project and a switch of writers from Hossein Amini to Joby Harold.
Hope is an interesting keyword and featured in the recent trailer for the Obi-Wan Kenobi show that had Ewan McGregor’s return as the beloved Jedi. Of course, episode four of Star Wars was renamed to A New Hope when the saga expanded. However, how much hope can be had in the Obi-Wan Kenobi storyline remains to be seen. The show is set between the events of Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, following the downfall of the Jedi and the uprising of the Empire. The galaxy could not be at a more bleak point, with Obi-Wan hiding in solace in Tatooine, keeping a distant, yet watchful eye over a young Luke Skywalker (wonder what becomes of him?) Serving as the main threat in the series, Hayden Christensen’s sensational return as the iconic Darth Vader. Vader has his group of sinister inquisitors scouring the galaxy for rogue Jedi, among them being Obi-Wan.
That synopsis looks like a difficult one to find any segments of hope, but we do know that Obi-Wan makes it. After all, Alec Guinness first graced cinema screens as the Jedi in events that follow the new Ewan McGregor- led show. However, in the first look at Vader’s return, Hayden Christensen warned we will be seeing a very powerful character. Ominous words from the Sith Lord. It begs the question, just how bleak was the original script? We will never know the answer to that question, but the eager anticipation for what is to come is reaching a fever pitch and will surely be palpable come the 25th of May.
Joining Ewan Mcgregor in the show are of course the aforementioned Hayden Christensen as Vader, Rupert Friend as The Grand Inquisitor, and Joel Edgerton as Uncle Owen Lars. Also in the cast are the likes of O’Shea Jackson Jr. and Kumail Nanjiani. That’s quite the group for director Deborah Chow to work with and should hopefully provide fruitful results. It’s safe to say, whether bleak or hopeful, that the force is with Obi-Wan Kenobi. May 25th cannot come soon enough.
