Obi-Wan Kenobi Star Wars series will debut on Disney+ in May

By Blair Marnell February 9, 2022

On May 25, 1977, the original Star Wars film premiered in theaters and changed cinema forever. That’s a seminal date for fans of the franchise, especially with the 45th anniversary coming up this year. With that in mind, Disney+ and Lucasfilm have set May 25 as the premiere date for the upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi mini-series.

Ewan McGregor will headline the Obi-Wan Kenobi series in the title role, which he previously filled in the Star Wars prequel trilogy. McGregor also lent his voice for cameo appearances in the sequel trilogy, but this will mark his first on-camera appearance as Obi-Wan since Revenge of the Sith in 2005.

McGregor isn’t the only prequel trilogy veteran coming back for the series. Hayden Christensen is reprising his role as Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader. Presumably, Obi-Wan’s former apprentice will be getting a rematch of their deadly duel on Mustafar in this series.

A poster for Disney+ series Obi-Wan Kenobi starring Ewan McGregor. — Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Star Wars novels and comics have revisited Obi-Wan’s time on Tatooine, but it’s unclear if this miniseries will take any inspiration from those stories. The only story detail in the Disney+ announcement is that the miniseries will be set 10 years after Obi-Wan went into hiding to watch over Luke Skywalker.

Kumail Nanjiani, Indira Varma, and Rupert Friend will co-star in Obi-Wan Kenobi alongside Moses Ingram, Joel Edgerton, Bonnie Piesse, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Sung Kang, Simone Kessell, and Benny Safdie.

Screenwriter Joby Harold is writing every episode of Obi-Wan Kenobi. His previous credits include John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, Edge of Tomorrow, Army of the Dead, and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. The Mandalorian season 1 standout Deborah Chow is directing every episode of the series.

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Blair Marnell has been an entertainment journalist for over 15 years. His bylines have appeared in Wizard Magazine, Geek…

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Disney shifts release dates for Marvel movies, Star Wars films, and Avatar sequels

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The writers' strike has lasted about one-and-a-half months so far, and it doesn't appear to be ending anytime soon. And now, Disney is making some major schedule changes to almost all of its upcoming franchise films. Avatar fans are going to feel it the most. Avatar 3 has been pushed back a year from December 2024 to December 19, 2025. The other sequels, Avatar 4 and Avatar 5, have been delayed to December 21, 2029, and December 19, 2031, respectively. That's a three-year delay for both titles from their previous release dates.

Marvel's 2024 slate is also getting a big shake-up, with Captain America: Brave New World moving away from its summer opening slot on May 3, 2024, to July 26, 2024. The Thunderbolts movie is shifting from July 26, 2024, to December 20, 2024, the former release date for Avatar 3. That will make it only the second MCU movie to be released in December after Spider-Man: No Way Home.

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Want to enjoy the Star Wars TV shows more? Watch the cartoons, already!

Ahsoka Tano prepares for battle in an episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars

I’m pretty nerdy about a lot of things: turntables, vinyl records, barbecue, Game of Thrones, and yes, Star Wars. To a fault, I can be hard to shut up once my string is pulled, and lately, much of my blathering has been focused around a couple of Star Wars TV series -- The Mandalorian and the upcoming Ahsoka, the latter of which I am super-excited for. But I’ve had a few conversations about these shows with friends recently that have been driving me nuts. The latest involved me gushing over a live-action cameo of the animated Star Wars: Rebels series character Zeb Orrelios in season 3, episode 5 of The Mandalorian. My friend exclaimed that he had no idea who Zeb was and that he'd never watched "that cartoon," and here we are.
But a couple of notes before I continue: First, I know that Star Wars: Rebels and its precursor, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, are “cartoons.” Second, I’m aware that I’m a grown man. The point is, I’m often amazed to learn that, for those and other reasons, many people have avoided these excellent animated Star Wars series -- and this is a mistake. Much of what happens in The Clone Wars and Rebels has direct ties to shows such as The Mandalorian, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett, and especially Ahsoka, as they introduce incredible characters and crucial backstories. Do you need to watch them to know what's going on? No. You don't even need to watch every episode to get a better understanding of the live-action shows: We have great essential episode guides for Clone Wars and Rebels to set you up. But time and again I’ve been rewarded with excitement, a better understanding of characters and plotlines, and a more satisfying cathartic payoff because of watching these "cartoons." Plus, they’re just really good.
And whether you’ve just started watching The Mandalorian or are, like me, waiting eagerly for Ahsoka in August, here are a few good reasons you should take the next few months and get caught up on some of the best cartoons you’ll ever see.
Note: There are Mandalorian spoilers ahead.
Ahsoka Tano gets her due

Making her live-action debut in season 2 of The Mandalorian, Ahsoka Tano began her journey as Anakin Skywalker's tenacious young Padawan, and her adventures throughout seven seasons of the animated Clone Wars made her one of the most exciting and loved Jedi characters in the Star Wars universe. Not only does she endure betrayal through Anakin's transformation into Darth Vader, but her arc connects her to the warrior Mandalorians when she helps Bo-Katan Kryze liberate the planet Mandalore from occupation. The series concludes when Darth Sidious issues Order 66, which triggered the betrayal and extermination of the Jedi, aligning the show with the film Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith.

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Why Star Wars Jedi: Survivor’s Cal Kestis needs his own Disney+ show

Cal wielding his blue lightsaber and walking with BD-1 in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor key art.

As Lucasfilm finally seems to be getting the ball rolling again for Star Wars on the theatrical front, the video game space has been showing the franchise's continued narrative strength. The latest example is Respawn Entertainment's Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. The sequel to 2019's successful Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order fleshes out the journey of Cal Kestis (voiced by Gotham and Shameless actor Cameron Monaghan), with his story feeling every bit as worthy of a live-action series.

Shows like Dave Filoni's Ahsoka look promising given Rosario Dawson's pitch-perfect performance in season 2 of The Mandalorian and Filoni's passion for the franchise. Should Lucasfilm want more Jedi-centric storytelling on Disney+, the Star Wars Jedi games have rich characters (all hail Turgle!) and intriguing storylines that could be an ideal fit for the episodic format that made Obi-Wan Kenobi and Andor so compelling.