Set a decade after the fall of the Jedi order and Order 66, Obi-Wan Kenobi follows the titular Jedi (Ewan McGregor) as he watches over a young Luke Skywalker growing up with his aunt and uncle on the desert planet of Tatooine. Meanwhile, Anakin Skywalker, now Darth Vader (Hayden Christensen), is bent on hunting down the remaining Jedi in the galaxy. At his side are his Sith inquisitors who use the Dark Side of the Force as a tool in their hunt. Leading them is the Grand Inquisitor, played by Rupert Friend, wielding his double lightsaber and a determination to hunt down the Force users.
This is not the Inquisitor’s first appearance in the Star Wars universe, however. He is a familiar villain to fans of Star Wars Rebels, the animated series that served as a spin-off to Star Wars: The Clone Wars. He and his inquisitors are known for their unique Vader inspired uniforms and red lightsabers, having faced off against Jedi and Force users like Kanan and Ezra Bridger, as well as Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order protagonist Cal Kestis.
Previously it was reported that Friend did not watch the animated version of his character, garnering outrage among fans who believed the actor should reference the characters previous storylines.
Collider confirmed with Friend at Star Wars Celebration that while the actor almost did not watch the previous animated versions of his character from Rebels, he did end up using the animated character as part of his inspiration for his on-screen performance.
“I got a strong sense of him from the script and from the animated production. Then I just wanted to work with our director Deborah Chow, and bring this character to life in the live-action space in a way that felt truthful to the essence of him,” Friend said.
The character is from the Pau’an species and as is therefore a pale white humanoid with red markings and golden eyes. Friend spent 4 hours in the makeup chair becoming the Inquisitor, but the experience was ultimately a positive one.
“It was a real honor actually, getting to inhabit this villain. It felt like an honor to me.”
Obi-Wan Kenobi premieres this Friday on Disney+.