Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi will feature notable connections to the broader Star Wars canon; here’s every reveal from the new video. The recent official clip for the upcoming Disney+ series includes footage of Ewan McGregor, who will be reprising his role as the titular Jedi Master for the first time since 2005, as he promotes the television series. The clip also has director Deborah Chow, who worked on The Mandalorian season 1, discussing details for Obi-Wan Kenobi’s highly-anticipated series. Set between Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, Obi-Wan Kenobi will explore the dark times that followed the rise of the Galactic Empire, where Obi-Wan, now known as “Ben” Kenobi, watches over a young Luke Skywalker in a time where Jedi are enemies of a fascist, Sith-led, regime.
The 19 years between the original and prequel Star Wars trilogies have been covered extensively in canon, with the video game Jedi: Fallen Order the animated series Star Wars: The Bad Batch, and the spinoff film Solo: A Star Wars Story exploring the earliest days of the Empire. As the timeline approaches the original trilogy, the TV show Star Wars Rebels and the spinoff film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story depict the fledgling Rebel Alliance and their early (and often seemingly futile) attacks against the Empire, with Rogue One tying directly into the opening of A New Hope, just as the Star Wars radio drama had in the Legends continuity.
Obi-Wan’s time on Tatooine has, understandably, been mostly left alone by Star Wars canon material, with some Marvel comic issues and an episode of Rebels briefly touching on it. The Rebels episode, notably, depicted the final confrontation between Kenobi and his old enemy, Maul (who survived his bisection), resulting in the former Sith’s demise. The concept art shown in the Obi-Wan Kenobi video reveals that the show will be steeped in canon lore and broader Star Wars connections, including surprising story details that tell a different tale between trilogies than the films themselves might have implied.
Inquisitors
One of the first pieces of concept art shown off was a landed Imperial shuttlecraft with a dark armored figure departing, escorted by two Star Wars stormtroopers. Those familiar with Star Wars canon material will be all too familiar with such a character. They’re an Imperial Inquisitor, a Sith-trained, dark side-using Jedi hunter in service to the Empire. Shown in Rebels, various Marvel comics, and Jedi: Fallen Order, the Inquisitors were some of the Empire’s deadliest agents, though they weren’t official members of the Sith Order. Sung Kang, who is set to play a lightsaber-wielding character in Obi-Wan Kenobi, might be playing this Inquisitor. The architecture and moisture vaporator in the background of the concept art indicates that the Inquisitor, regardless of who plays them, will be visiting Tatooine, which doesn’t bode well for Kenobi.
Obi-Wan Will Do More Than Just Protect Luke
Several pieces of concept art indicate that Obi-Wan Kenobi will leave Tatooine instead of spending the entire series watching over Luke. As shown at the end of Revenge of the Sith and his appearance in Rebels, Ben was on a long-term mission, not in exile. Laying low on the remote world of Tatooine, Ben Kenobi watched over Luke, waiting until the time was right to train him as a Jedi. The sizzle reel shows new locales that might not be Tatooine, going by their terrain and settlements. It would take a lot to make Ben leave his position, but perhaps he fights and kills an Inquisitor on Tatooine, forcing him to head to another world to throw off the trail for Luke’s safety. Ben might also come into contact with other Jedi Purge survivors like he did in Legends with Ferus Olin.
The Return To Coruscant
Two particular images imply that perhaps Obi-Wan Kenobi will bring Ben back to the former Republic capital planet of Coruscant. The first is a seedy city street reminiscent of the ground level of Coruscant shown in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, with what looks like a cityscape visible between buildings. Another image shows a building interior filled with Imperial Stormtroopers. Ben would be entering the lion’s den of his pursuers if he ventured to Coruscant, but it’d provide some high-tension situations in which Kenobi would need to work harder than ever to conceal his Jedi identity.
Rebel Speeders
One of the more intriguing images in the Obi-Wan Kenobi sizzle reel was that of a hangar full of T-47 airspeeders in what looks like a snowy environment. Star Wars faithful will immediately recognize these as the Rebel Alliance’s primary air support vehicle during the iconic Battle of Hoth in The Empire Strikes Back. Interestingly, Obi-Wan will take place in 9 BBY, seven years before the Rebel Alliance is formally established. Rebel cells, such as Saw Gerrera’s Partisans, existed for years before they coalesced into the Rebellion seen in Rogue One and the original trilogy, so these speeders may belong to one such group.
Vader’s Mustafar Fortress
Equally exciting as Ewan McGregor’s triumphant return to the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi is Hayden Christensen’s return as Darth Vader. The clip shows concept art of Vader, sitting on a throne in what looks like his castle. Based on his Bast Castle in Legends, Darth Vader’s castle debuted in Rogue One. Unlike its Legends counterpart, which was located on the hazardous world of Vjun, Vader’s castle in canon is on Mustafar, and its history was explored in detail in several Marvel comics. Vader’s throne room is a new addition to the foreboding castle, and Obi-Wan Kenobi may reveal additional locations within the structure that Star Wars canon hasn’t shown before.
Obi-Wan vs Vader
What may be the most exciting reveal from the Obi-Wan Kenobi video, however, is the revelation that Ben Kenobi and Darth Vader will clash in a lightsaber duel, confirming that they’ve had at least one encounter between the events of Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope. Similar to the duels between Anakin Skywalker and Count Dooku in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, having Vader and Kenobi fight before they meet again aboard the Death Star could potentially contradict their dialogue in A New Hope. With careful writing, however, their duel could technically fit into the timeline without causing continuity snarls. Their fight could also potentially be a vision for one or both combatants, allowing for a crowd-pleasing duel while remaining respectful of the Star Wars franchise’s first theatrical release.
Whether it’s real or a Force-vision of some sort, Ben and Vader’s duel doesn’t appear to take place on Tatooine. The two are fighting on a walkway in some industrial location, possibly Coruscant or another planet other than Tatooine. If the duel is real, it may be related to Ben’s potential encounter with an Inquisitor, which gets the attention of his former friend and pupil. Ben might appear to die at the end of his encounter with Vader in Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi, ending the Sith and the Empire’s pursuit of Kenobi and allowing him to return to Tatooine and resume his mission seen in other Star Wars canon material.
Key Release Dates
- Rogue Squadron (2023)Release date: Dec 22, 2023
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