A new report details that the Obi-Wan Kenobi Disney Plus series starring Ewan McGregor has sent the entire crew home and the show’s production has been put on hold.
Collider reports “the Obi-Wan series has been put on hold, as the crew that had assembled at Pinewood Studios was sent home.”
They also indicate the reason for the series being put on hold is that Kathleen Kennedy is unhappy with the scripts and wants them to be reworked before filming begins.
Related: Rumor: Young Luke Skywalker to Appear in Obi-Wan Kenobi Series!
The Hollywood Reporter Corroborates
The Hollywood Reporter would also echo Collider’s initial reporting citing issues with the scripts. THR reports, “Sources tell THR that the scripts — only two were written — and story became an issue and that the entire package has been jettisoned.”
Their report continues, “Lucasfilm is now on the hunt for a new writer to pen the series. At the same time, sources say the project is being reconfigured from six episodes to four.”
The THR report also indicates the issue with the script might have been that it was too similar to The Mandalorian and would show Obi-Wan Kenobi taking a young Luke Skywalker and possibly a young Leia under his wing similar to how Mando took Baby Yoda under his protection.
Ewan McGregor Responds
Ewan McGregor responded to the initial report from Collider at a Birds of Prey event. McGregor spoke to IGN saying, “It’s just slid to next year, that’s all. The scripts were really good. I think now that Episode IX came out and everyone at Lucasfilm’s got more time to spend on the writing, they felt like they wanted more time to spend on the writing.”
He added, “I’ve read about eighty, ninety percent of what they’ve written so far, and it’s really, really good. Instead of shooting this August, they just want to start shooting in January, that’s all. Nothing more dramatic than that. It often happens in projects, they just wanted to push it to next year.”
McGregor did note that the unannounced release date remains unchanged, “It will have the same release date, I don’t think it will affect the release date. They’re still shooting towards having the film [show] release when it was going to be originally.”
As for THR’s report that the show would be reduced to four episodes, McGregor said, “I haven’t heard that.”
Related: Rumor: Jar Jar Binks to Appear in Obi-Wan Kenobi Star Wars Series With New Look
Fake Rumors
These reports from Collider and THR come after a parody account originally tweeted out McGregor exited the project due to creative differences.
Ewan McGregor has exited the ‘OBI-WAN’ Disney+ series due to creative differences. (Source: @disneyplus) pic.twitter.com/Dr5WIBto9J
— DiscussingFilm (@DicsussingFilm) January 15, 2020
They would admit their reporting was a “joke” and it “got blown way out of proportion.”
It is a joke. This got blown way out of proportion.
— DiscussingFilm (@DicsussingFilm) January 17, 2020
Grace Randolph Rumors About Show’s Cancellation
However, YouTuber Grace Randolph indicated she also heard there were creative differences with McGregor and Disney.
what I’m hearing – creative differences between McGregor & Disney
Might still be going on, so both saying the rumor is “false”.
We’ll know soon enough re this, #Hawkeye etc
Worth noting that if u greenlight this many shows, some of them might not work out. pic.twitter.com/7C3c29dItY
— Grace Randolph (@GraceRandolph) January 18, 2020
In fact, Randolph indicated the show might get canned.
I am also hearing that #ObiWan has been canceled on #DisneyPlus 😳
When / If #Disney confirms I will cover…#StarWars pic.twitter.com/5sadCzCAfx
— Grace Randolph (@GraceRandolph) January 18, 2020
Kathleen Kennedy Says Scripts Done
These reports and McGregor’s responses are rather interesting especially since when the show was announced Kathleen Kennedy proudly declared at D23 in August, “We are really close. We have all the scripts written. We are ready to start shooting next year. We could not be more excited. Can’t wait to start production.”
Either Kennedy hadn’t actually read the scripts and seen what was in them when she made the announcement at D23 or she was belting out a lie about the scripts being done. Another possibility is that Kennedy might be getting pushed out of Star Wars with quite a bit of speculation indicating that Marvel Studios head honcho Kevin Feige might be moving in to right the sinking ship that is Star Wars following J.J. Abrams derivative The Force Awakens and Rian Johnson’s The Last Jedi.
YouTuber Jeremy Griggs from Geeks + Gamers believes Kennedy lied.
Nevertheless, it appears there is quite a bit of chaos still happening at Lucasfilm and it doesn’t look like it’s going to be getting cleared up any time soon.
What do you make of these reports and Ewan McGregor’s response? What do you think is going on at Lucasfilm?