Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi Disney+ Series set to begin filming in September 2020
Since being announced at D-23 last September, the Star Wars Disney Plus series revolving around Obi-Wan Kenobi, with Ewan McGregor reprising the titular role from the Prequel Trilogy, has gone through a fair bit of turmoil.
Earlier this year, it was reported that the upcoming series may be delayed due to issues with the script, and once the COVID-19 pandemic began, everything was sent in a state of flux. However, for the first time in months, we do have an update on the status of the series.
According to MakingStarWars.net, they state that sources have informed them that the Star Wars: Kenobi series is set to begin filming at a location in Southern California next month. Originally, the series was thought to begin filming in 2021, so the fact that it has been moved up is a good sign that it is past those older issues.
These sources add that the filming will take place at a “train yard” where The Mandalorian filmed several of its exterior shots for its first and second seasons.
This lot is said to be where many of the exterior shots for Tatooine were filmed, so it makes sense they would do the same for the Obi-Wan series, as the series is to take place on the same desert planet.
The article MSW posted does elaborate, however, that they are unsure how much filming will be done in this space, as sources from Pinewood Studios in the UK are “under the impression” the Star Wars: Kenobi series will be shooting scenes there as well.
Naturally, with the current state of the World and the ongoing travel restrictions, plans can change at any time, and as was shown in Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian, Lucasfilm has developed the “virtual sets” to film most of the scenes from within a studio.
Regardless of where it is shot, the fact that production is ramping up months ahead of schedule despite the COVID pandemic is excellent news for Star Wars fans.
As for when the show to be released on Disney+, the turn around for the development for the first Season of The Mandalorian was about one year, so with any luck, we can hope for the same time frame for Kenobi, putting us at a Fall 2021 release date barring any setbacks.
The Mandalorian is currently streaming on Disney Plus, a formal premiere date for the Obi-Wan series has not yet been announced.