Okay, so maybe the world was a bit premature on the whole “Lando is definitely getting a spin-off film” rumors yesterday. There’s no denying that from the first second Donald Glover’s Lando was seen in a teaser, in all his fur coat glory, fans were excited to see more. But even still, the most talked-about and heavily rumored “Star Wars” spin-off film is ‘Obi-Wan.’
At this point, it feels almost like an open secret. Yes, Disney/Lucasfilm is working on an ‘Obi-Wan’ film. Yes, it would most likely star Ewan McGregor. And rumors have been circulating that Stephen Daldry, director of such tentpole blockbusters like “The Hours,” “Billy Elliot,” and “The Reader,” was attached to direct. All of this is alleged but basically confirmed.
Now, according to TMZ (who reportedly found the info in Production Weekly, which covers the new ‘Obi-Wan’ movie in their latest issue), there’s a production bulletin floating around Lucasfilm that confirms much of what we know and gives a little bit more details. The ‘Obi-Wan’ film, with the working title “Joshua Tree,” is apparently in the works, with Daldry still listed as the director (and we’d heard some rumblings to the contrary at one point). The film is supposed to start filming in London next spring, where they’ve filmed “Star Wars” features in the past.
Oh and there’s a bit of a plot description, as well:
“Obi-Wan is on Tatooine being an elusive hermit and stuff, but secretly watches over an infant Luke Skywalker, whom he delivered to his uncle, Owen. Tensions between the local farmers and a tribe of Sand People — headed by a ruthless war chief — eventually brings Obi outta hiding … and into Jedi kickass mode. Scene.”
While any “Star Wars” aficionado might scratch their head at this description, it sounds about right. However, one has to wonder if there’s more to the story because, frankly, that doesn’t sound like a rousing three-act epic. Instead, it sounds like a pretty cool 30-minute short.
That leads us to our final rumor/speculation that corroborates this plot description. A tweet by Christopher Marc, from OmegaUnderground, says, “We might be seeing former Jedi turned Tusken Raider warlord Sharad Hett or his son A’Sharad Hett (aka Darth Krayt) as the villain/villains of #Kenobi.”
It’s unsure if this is pure speculation or a rumor that he’s throwing out there, but either way, this does sound like maybe there’s potential for more to the TMZ report than just “a tribe of Sand People.” If ‘Obi-Wan,’ or ‘Kenobi,’ or whatever else they call it, features some Jedi/Sith tie-ins, then maybe that’s enough meat for a full-length film.
Clearly, none of this is going to be confirmed for a while. Lucasfilm is keeping mum on their plans post-‘Episode IX,’ particularly when it comes to spin-off films. Perhaps they’re waiting for “Solo: A Star Wars Story” to hit theaters to judge what the correct course of action moving forward is. Either way, where there’s smoke, there’s fire. And it looks like there’s plenty of smoke coming from Obi-Wan Kenobi’s home on Tatooine.
Update: Maybe TMZ’s synopsis is just full of shit?
On the left, @TMZ reporting the synopsis of an Obi-Wan movie.
On the right, the Amazon synopsis of the Legends novel Kenobi.
Don’t fall for this stuff, people. pic.twitter.com/pnkJBwPAB5
— Anthony (@AnthonyTaylor_) May 17, 2018