Obi-Wan Kenobi Writer Admits Darth Vader Should Have Won
Well... goodbye, there?
We recently learned that Stuart Beattie, who wrote the script for an Obi-Wan Kenobi film which was eventually adapted for the Disney+ series, originally had a trilogy of Kenobi movies planned. This didn’t end up coming to fruition, but apparently certain aspects of his story were changed for the series as well. Namely, Darth Vader winning the final duel between him and his former Master.
In an interview with the Direct, Beattie revealed his version of the script had Vader winning the duel, believing that Obi-Wan Kenobi was dead. He also said that Kenobi would have definitely killed Vader if given the chance, to save millions of lives. The opposite of these two things happened in the actual series, as Obi-Wan reignited his connection with the Force and left his former Padawan defeated with a broken helmet for his troubles. Beattie said in the original version of his script, Obi-Wan and Vader fought on a space station, with Vader pushing Obi-Wan off and believing he was dead. Obi-Wan still ended up in relatively the same place as the Disney+ series, realizing Vader was not truly the Anakin Skywalker he knew, ending his pursuit. Also, Vader is told at the end of the Disney+ series by Emperor Palpatine to forget Kenobi, whereas Beattie believed Vader would continue to pursue him if he knew Kenobi was alive.
Regardless of these original plans, the Obi-Wan Kenobi series is officially in the book, with no plans for a second season at this point. However, the season did leave the door slightly open, with Kenobi no longer feeling the need to dote over Luke every day on Tattoine. Perhaps another season could show Kenobi helping the Rebel Alliance in their early days. Ewan McGregor has expressed interest in returning, so it’s certainly not outside the realm of possibility. Hayden Christensen, who appeared as Anakin in the series and filled out the Vader suit, has also expressed interest in a solo Vader series. Obviously, Disney isn’t afraid to dip back into the Star Wars nostalgia well, so maybe we could see these series in the near future.
Until then, there should be plenty of Star Wars content to keep fans occupied that presumably won’t involve Obi-Wan Kenobi at all. The upcoming Andor series will see Diego Luna reprising the role of Cassian Andor from Rogue One. Andor will portray the early days of the Rebel Alliance and will follow Cassian Andor up to the events of Rogue One, with a second season for the series already ordered. Andor is hitting Disney+ on August 31. The rest of 2022 will see the animated The Bad Batch Season 2 and the new animated anthology Tales of the Jedi hit the Disney streaming platform. Perhaps the most hotly anticipated upcoming Star Wars property is the return of The Mandalorian with its third season. The Pedro Pascal-led series returns in February 2023. While we might not be seeing too much of Obi-Wan Kenobi or Darth Vader anytime soon, these series and other upcoming Star Wars projects should keep us plenty entertained.
