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Star Wars rumors: Obi-Wan Kenobi movie could debut on Disney’s streaming service

By Josh Fitzgibbons

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The long awaited, but still not yet confirmed, Obi-Wan Kenobi standalone movie could debut on Disney’s streaming service, slated to be available this Fall.

Yes, we’re still patiently waiting for any news concerning the highly anticipated, but thus far officially unannounced, Obi-Wan Kenobi Star Wars Story.

Cue the rumor mill. According to Star Wars News Net, the Obi-Wan Kenobi standalone film could debut as a Disney ‘straight-to-streaming-service’ entry in the franchise.

Rumors concerning the development of a Kenobi movie starring Ewan McGregor have been circulating since Rogue One; the first Star Wars Story hit theaters back in December 2016. Since then, we’ve gotten The Last Jedi, a commercial, but ambiguous, success and Solo, a box office failure.

This storm of events have split the Star Wars fan base and forced Lucasfilm to try to mop up the mess – which they did in part by announcing that all standalone Star Wars movies have been put on hold.

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This suspension of the standalone films, although apparently only temporary, has panicked fans, particularly those of us still patiently waiting for a Kenobi movie.

However, according to the current rumor, we may get the movie we’ve been waiting for if it does indeed debut on the streaming service next Fall.

Straight-to-streaming media today is undoubtedly NOT the modern day equivalent of direct-to-DVD. Companies like HBO and Netflix have mastered creating engaging, high-quality content that debuts on their respective services.

Remember, Game of Thrones is a television show, and Netflix has released countless original shows and movies directly on their platform.

These have proven that high-quality content doesn’t necessarily have to be released in a movie theater. In fact, each episode of shows like Game of Thrones often rivals blockbuster movies in terms of length, acting, and special effects.

Therefore, there’s no reason to worry that a potential Kenobi film’s quality would suffer just because it’d be released on the streaming service.

There are already promising signs that Disney’s service will be top notch – remember, Jon Favreau is currently working on a live-action Star Wars television show for the service.

A Kenobi film could draw more people to the service, hopefully leading to the service’s success, which would lead to more quality content, and so forth. A movie set on Tatooine between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope would also likely be smaller scale than previous Star Wars movies in terms of set pieces and special effects.

Therefore, a budget more closely associated with a television show than with a blockbuster movie would suffice.

Photo Credit: Lucasfilm

It all makes at least a little bit of sense. Then why have I got a bad feeling about this?

Here’s why: Star Wars is an event. Viewing Ewan McGregor’s glorious return to a galaxy far, far away on my television at home wouldn’t be the same as waiting in line at the theater, paying too much for popcorn, and watching Obi-Wan Kenobi on the big screen with fellow Star Wars fans.

Ewan McGregor is too big a star, and Obi-Wan Kenobi is too famous a character to be relegated to a ‘straight-to-streaming-service’ film.

Star Wars has dominated the box office of late. Solo was a hiccup in terms of ticket sales, but that film’s quality and story were not the reason for the lackluster numbers. Lucasfilm shouldn’t abandon ship and start avoiding the theater just because of one financial failure.

I will gladly indulge in any and every form of Star Wars media that’s released, whether it be on the silver screen, in a book, or on my television at home.

Call me old-fashioned, but I feel that the feature-length films, especially one featuring Obi-Wan Kenobi that fans have been waiting for, should still be released in theaters, where they can be appropriately enjoyed alongside other Star Wars fans.

Next: Episode IX Rey, Kylo Ren rumors debunked and explored

What are your thoughts on an Obi-Wan Kenobi film potentially debuting on Disney‘s streaming service? Let us know in the comments

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