The Hollywood Reporter has reported that the Obi-Wan movie is officially in early development, and the story is now being picked up by other media. No actor attached yet, as the script hasn't been written, but it will apparently be directed by Stephen Daldry of Billy Elliot, The Hours, The Reader, and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close fame. I wonder how long it will take Lucasfilm to fire him?

Speculate away on what the story will be, if JJM's novel will have any sort of influence, or how strictly LFL will prevent the director from making a SW movie that doesn't look exactly like every other SW movie. Here's the THR article's text:


Oscar-nominated filmmaker Stephen Daldry is in early talks for the film, which would center on the Jedi Master who has been played by both Alec Guinness and Ewan McGregor.
Stephen Daldry is Star Wars’ new hope.

The Oscar-nominated director behind Billy Elliot and The Hours is in early talks to direct a Star Wars standalone movie centering on Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

Sources say talks are at the earliest of stages and that the project has no script. If a deal makes, Daldry would oversee the development and writing with Lucasfilm brass. It's not known at this stage if Ewan McGregor will reprise his role.

The Obi-Wan Kenobi standalone is one of several projects being developed by Lucasfilm and Disney that fall outside the trilogies telling the saga of the Skywalker family. A Han Solo movie is now in the final stages of shooting under new director Ron Howard and Lucasfilm is also looking at movies featuring Yoda and bounty hunter Boba Fett, among others.

In the original Star Wars trilogy, Kenobi was at first a desert-dwelling and war-weary hermit who later proved to be a wise and powerful warrior, brandishing a light saber. He was briefly a mentor to a young Luke before being cut down by Darth Vader, his former pupil. Alec Guinness played Kenobi, garnering him an Oscar nomination to boot.

The character got star treatment in the George Lucas-directed prequels which told the origin of Vader and his betrayal of Kenobi and the Jedis. McGregor has said he would be open to playing the character again. Sources stress, however, that since there is no script, no actor is attached.
Daldry hails from the theater world and made his feature debut with Billy Elliot, which netted him his first directing Oscar nomination. He followed that up with searing dramas The Hours and The Reader, which also netted him directing nominations.

He most recently directed episodes of Netflix’s period drama The Crown, which put him into play in this Emmy season.

He is repped by CAA.

 

Interesting. It would be a safe film in terms of target audience. OT era, tataoine, bit of Luke probably. Guaranteed box office smash. Plus Ewan.

 

If true it does indeed look like Lucasfilm is moving on from all those young whipper snapper directors.

 

Cautiously hype.
It would need to not be a blockbuster type film though.
Somewhat somber and small scale character drama.
Easy on the pandering, no out of place fanservice.
And shot in Tunisia.

...unless it's pre TPM. Now THAT would be awesome.

 

Yeehaw!

 

GREAT NEWS! JJM's novel is one of my favorites, although I'm perfectly at peace with LF creating a new story of the Tatooine years (if that is indeed the time period...I would assume it is.).

 

Anthony Breznican has added his two cents: "An Obi-Wan Kenobi movie may be directed by Stephen Daldry, but my sources caution these are very early talks."

 

Doesn't the novel take place shortly after ROTS? Unless the film is doing the same thing it doesn't even have to cover any of the same things that the book did.

 

I hope it's Ewan.

He really is the best part of the Prequels.

 

The PT is great in general.

 

...

 

Hey, if we outlawed snark entirely we'd not have a forum at all.

 

I swear if I find out that Lucasfilm has decided to go in an "origin story" direction with a child actor playing Obi Wan I had better wake up in a cold sweat a few seconds afterward!

 

Oh, i'm sure i'm guilty of more than a few of those.

 

If this turns out to be true I'll be looking forward to it a lot more than I am right now for Han Solo. I suspect it will be in between ROTS and ANH like the Kenobi novel but a movie about his past pre TPM could be amazing. From TCW we know that Kenobi and Satine were on the run at one point fighting for their lives. That could make a great film.

 

Bruh.

A live action Clone Wars movie with Ewan Mcgregor playing Clone Wars Obi-wan.

I'd cry. Beautiful.

 

While pre TPM has more potential and would be more interesting, it would probably mean no Mcgregor

A clone wars movie may be a little too PT for Disney's tastes/wallets as well

 

Samurai in the Old West sort of story? Obi-Wan dealing with ne'er do wells on Tattooine??

 

If they really wanted to they could have Mcgregor play the older Obi-Wan and show flashbacks to his past with either a younger actor or a bit of CGI (a bit like Rogue One). There's just so much potential for the film.

 

Hey, with the upcoming Battlefront II giving multiple eras and the comics focusing on Maul and Windu, it would be a great way for them to expand their influence over the brand and bring the PT-era stuff into the same spotlight as the rest of the stuff they're putting out.

 

The real question is who's gonna do the novelization, John Jackson Miller or Matthew Stover?

 

While I do think this is fantastic news, we have to keep in mind that this is only a rumor. Is it a rumor from a reliable source? Yes, but it is still just a rumor.

Now that reality is out of the way, OH MY GOD AN OBI-WAN MOVIE IS HAPPENING. THIS IS FANTASTIC NEWS AND IF EWAN MCGREGOR COMES BACK TO PLAY OBI-WAN (which if he doesn't at this point then like, what the hell, the last couple years of him being asked about an Obi-Wan movie every single day will have been a complete waste of time) IT WILL BE THE BEST STAR WARS MOVIE EVER HANDS DOWN (Note: I don't make those things happen, I am in no way shape or form involved wuth Lucasfilm or the film making industry and this movie suck please do not hate me). AHHHHHHHH.

 

Is there really anything about Stephen Daldry's resume that would inspire any confidence in this project?