What You Need to Know Before Watching ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’

I’m not going to start by saying “Hello there,” because you’re going to be hearing “Hello there” a lot over the next several weeks. A little more than three months after the last Star Wars streaming series named after an original trilogy character and starring an actor from the prequels, The Book of Boba Fett, wrapped up its first season, another is about to begin. This time, Obi-Wan Kenobi is back, perchance to greet someone with his cheeky catchphrase for the third time.

Disney+ Watch Guide | Obi-Wan Kenobi

In case you’ve been living on the planet farthest from the bright center to the universe and missed the two trailers, Obi-Wan Kenobi is coming this week. The miniseries is set 10 years after Episode III and nine years before Episode IV and centers on Obi-Wan’s adventures on Tatooine and beyond as he tries to safeguard a 10-year-old Luke Skywalker and evade detection and destruction by the Empire’s Jedi-hunting Inquisitors. Ewan McGregor will reprise his prequel role as the bearded, genteel Jedi first portrayed by Alec Guinness; Hayden Christensen, who played the adolescent Anakin Skywalker in Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, will once again don the Darth Vader suit; and a seriously CGI de-aged Mark Hamill will play little Luke. (Kidding, kidding—Luke is played by an actual kid, Grant Feely.) The series is written by Edge of Tomorrow, Underground, and John Wick: Chapter 3 producer Joby-Wan Harold, who also serves as showrunner, while acclaimed director Deborah Chow, who helmed two standout Season 1 episodes of The Mandalorian, will be behind the camera for the duration.

The first two of Obi-Wan Kenobi’s six episodes will premiere on Disney+ on Friday, which will coincide with the first in-person Star Wars Celebration since 2019. The timing holds some additional significance: This month marks the 45th anniversary of Obi-Wan and Darth Vader’s debuts in Episode IV, as well as the 20th anniversary of McGregor and Christensen first sharing the screen in Episode II. Peak Star Wars season is upon us, and the hype is strong with this series, so let’s run through some prompts to prepare for the latest and potentially greatest release in a busy year for Star Wars on the small screen.

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