Liam Neeson Says He Wants To Be Part Of The 'Obi-Wan Kenobi' Series
Lately, Star Wars has been on a roll. Since the runaway success of The Mandalorian on Disney+ they've announced project after project. With more than its fair share of series and movies on their way, announced shortly before the revival of Lucasfilm Games, and even confirmations of new games coming, Star Wars is primed to be one of the biggest things to come in the next couple decades. While there's hype for project upon project, there's not many with the hype and the history of Obi-Wan Kenobi.
When it comes to Obi-Wan Kenobi, the rumors are endless. This series was rumored long before it even got confirmed, and the rumors have come to talk about every aspect of the show. Today, we're not talking about a rumor, but actually something that an actor mentioned. It turns out that Liam Neeson, Qui-Gon Jinn himself, wouldn't deny a part in the Kenobi series, according to an interview with Collider. While it's not a lock to say he wants the project, he has gone on record saying he'd be open to the idea of reprising the short-lived Jedi Master from The Phantom Menace.
"I'll be honest with you: I haven't heard that at all," he said when the rumor of him being involved with Obi-Wan Kenobi was first brought up to him. "Sure, I'd be up for that. Yeah."
Neeson initially seemed skeptical about returning for this kind of production, but it seems that he may have a soft spot for the maverick Jedi, reprising his role in The Clone Wars as the voice of the master Jedi. It's not like it would be difficult to put him in the series either. Qui-Gon has many mentions and set-ups throughout the franchise, though many of these mentions may have been deleted over time. The parts that do remain in finished products of the Star Wars movies are a couple of voice clips (one in Attack of the Clones and one in The Rise of Skywalker) and even a direct mention from Yoda himself about Kenobi going to Tatooine for training from Jinn. If they chose to include Neeson, it could be that kind of training that we see first-hand.
In Attack of the Clones, right around when Anakin has his infamous scene with the Tuskens, we hear a clip of Qui-Gon trying to reach Anakin through the Force. "Anakin, Anakin, NO!" we hear the voice of Qui-Gon's spirit shout as the scene transitions to Yoda at the Jedi Temple telling Mace Windy that Skywalker is in pain. Combined with the deleted scene from Revenge of the Sith of Jinn talking to Master Yoda through the Force about how to become one with the Force and become a Jedi spirit as we've seen many times in the series, there's plenty of opportunity for Obi-Wan's old master to play a new role in the galaxy far far away.
Details on Obi-Wan Kenobi are scarce, to say the least, almost all knowledge at this point relying on theories and rumors. Since Hayden Christensen was confirmed to be reprising his role as Anakin Skywalker, this time in his Darth Vader state, people have been looking for more familiar faces to appear in the series. Obi-Wan Kenobi has the potential to be a treasure trove of references and appearances of familiar faces, something The Mandalorian hasn't been short of in any way. But Obi-Wan Kenobi is much closer to the main storyline of the Skywalker saga than The Mandalorian has been.
Regardless of whether or not Neeson makes another appearance as the popular Jedi, it seems that the likelihood of him returning to the role isn't quite zero by his standards. The ball just appears to be in Disney's court as of now.
Source(s): Collider