The Shocking Origin Behind Obi-Wan Kenobi’s Secret Homeworld
You might think you know a lot about Star Wars, but pop quiz, hot shot: do you know what Obi-Wan Kenobi’s homeworld is? It would be impressive if you did, as the name of this planet was never mentioned by the Jedi Master. However, in a conversation with Jon Stewart, George Lucas once joked that Kenobi was from a planet named “Stewjon,” and that bizarre joke became a part of Star Wars canon.
Pre-Disney
Before we can explain how such a stupid name (even by the standards of Star Wars names) became part of the franchise canon, you need to know a bit about how canon worked back then.
Back before he sold everything to Disney, George Lucas was quite literally the ultimate authority on Star Wars history. The standing policy was to treat anything he said about this universe and its characters as real, even when he was making what was clearly a joke.
The Interview
The Stewjon bit came up during the fifth Star Wars Celebration event that brought fans from all over the world to Orlando, Florida in 2010. It also brought Daily Show legend Jon Stewart, who served as the host of the entire convention. As host, he spent some face time with George Lucas himself, and their interview was considered the main event for this Star Wars love-in.
Skywalker Wine
George Lucas cracked several jokes while speaking to his comedian host, one of which was about the existence of “Skywalker wine.” Lucas claimed that “Skywalker” was such a common name in this galaxy far, far away that Darth Vader wouldn’t immediately realize that a heroic Rebel pilot with the last name Skywalker was his son.
Lucas said the name was so ubiquitous that “Skywalker wine” was a famous brand, and it didn’t take long before “Skywalker wine” was made part of the Star Wars canon.
Obi-Wan Doesn’t Remember Stewjon
Arguably, though, the craziest revelation from this Celebration is that Obi-Wan Kenobi is from a planet named Stewjon (“This is one of the first things I wrote in the very first script,” Lucas claimed).
This was another Lucas joke, and the punchline begins and ends with the fact that he was talking to a man named Jon Stewart. As with the Skywalker wine, though, the word of Lucas was law, and this became the official homeworld for everyone’s favorite Jedi master.
In case you were wondering, Obi-Wan Kenobi never says anything about Stewjon in any of the movies, books, comics, or games.
Conveniently, the Jedi doesn’t really remember anything about his homeworld, including leaving it. He said as much to Anakin Skywalker in the Age of the Republic one-shot fittingly titled Obi-Wan Kenobi.
George Lucas Jokes
There is always a chance that a future Disney-era Star Wars show or even movie might shed some more light on Obi-Wan Kenobi’s homeworld and the general circumstances of his joining the Jedi Order.
Should that happen, this is one of the few times we’re begging Disney to change one of the previously established bits of franchise lore. If we ever have to hear about it onscreen, can Kenobi please come from a planet with a better name than Stewjon?
Still, dumb names are part and parcel of this fictional galaxy. And let’s face it–if nobody ever enjoyed bad George Lucas jokes, there wouldn’t be so many fans of his biggest joke of all: the prequels.
