At long last, the first two episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi have arrived on Disney+, after being wildly anticipated by fans since its announcement. The series had its world premiere at Star Wars Celebration, with showrunner Deborah Chow in attendance, as well as a handful of the cast. Naturally, the man of the hour himself, Ewan McGregor was also there, greeted at every opportunity by enthusiastic cheers from fans.
In speaking to Collider about returning to the iconic role of Obi-Wan Kenobi, which he last played 17 years ago, McGregor noted that his preparation for the part offered him a good excuse to go back and watch the prequel films again. He first brought the character to life in 1999's The Phantom Menace, followed by Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith a few years later.
McGregor went on to add that it took him by surprise when he rewatched The Phantom Menace (which marked his Star Wars debut) — not only how young he was, but also how much he enjoyed it. He said he particularly enjoyed watching himself perform alongside Liam Neeson as Qui-Gon Jinn and Ahmed Best as Jar Jar Binks, and the dynamic the three of them shared.
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Of course, there was also his working relationship with Hayden Christensen, who plays Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader. In McGregor's words:
"And then of course once Hayden came in that relationship is very special in the trilogy, but also in my life. I love Hayden and it was so nice to work with him when he was fresh, like an 18, 19-year-old actor. I'd done the first one, and I'd done good handful of movies by the time we'd started Episode 2. For Hayden, he was just totally fresh, and passionate, and breaking down the scenes, doing all his homework, and it was great to work with him."
Though he admits the two of them lost touch over the years, McGregor went on to add how great it was that the two of them get to work together again, and how in this view they've hardly missed a step, as though the last 17 years didn't happen. With the first two episodes streaming now, fans of the two of them will not have to wait long before seeing them grace their screens as the iconic duo once more — though, granted, on opposite sides of the conflict this time.
The first two episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi are streaming now on Disney+.