For the last week, the long-gestating Obi-Wan Kenobi series has been plagued by rumors that Lucasfilm had chosen to scrap the project completely. Fortunately, it doesn’t look like this is the case, but viewers will have to wait a bit longer for Ewan McGregor to return as the legendary Jedi Master. The Hollywood Reporter brings word that Lucasfilm has put the as-yet-untitled TV show on hold.
Pre-production apparently came to a halt because Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy was unhappy with the screenwriting efforts. According to Collider, the studio subsequently told crew members who set up shop at London’s Pinewood Studios to go home. One source specified that the delay would last “indefinitely.”
Lucasfilm previously recruited director Deborah Chow and writer Hossein Amini to develop the series. The studio was originally targeting a July start date, but this will most likely be postponed until after the story gets retooled. THR’s sources also revealed that the producers are shaving the episode count down from six to four episodes.
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Disney, Lucasfilm, and McGregor announced the Obi-Wan series at D23 last summer. The show supposedly picks up eight years after Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith and will feature McGregor reprising his iconic role onscreen for the first time since that movie premiered in 2005. The series rose from the ashes of a planned anthology film headlined by McGregor’s character. But after Solo: A Star Wars Story underperformed at the box office, Lucasfilm shelved all theatrical spinoffs in development.
In spite of this latest news, McGregor and Chow remain onboard to star and direct, respectively. However, Amini’s fate isn’t as clear.
What do you make of Lucasfilm’s decision to delay the Obi-Wan series? Let us know in the comment section below!
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