According to , the long-rumored Star Wars Anthology film centered around Obi-Wan Kenobi has taken one step closer to becoming a reality. The outlet is proclaiming that prestige filmmaker Stephen Daldry (Billy Elliot, The Reader) is in early negotiations to come on board the project. Should a deal be reached, Daldry would oversee the overall development on the film, include the writing, for Lucasfilm.
At this time, actor Ewan McGregor is not attached to return, but that could change. The actor, who portrayed a younger iteration of the character in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, hasn’t be quiet about his desire to return to the role beyond a voicework capacity*. Given that this film is likely to be set during the gap between the prequel trilogy and the original trilogy, McGregor is around the right age he’d need to be. Bottom line? I’ll be shocked if he doesn’t sign on.
As for Daldry? I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t surprised by this choice. Thus far Lucasfilm and Disney have stuck to hiring genre directors (be they young or more seasoned). Even their most left-field choices to date have fit that paradigm. That said, it does make some sense in light of recent events. While things have apparently panned out well with Rian Johnson’s hiring on Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the productions of both Rogue One and (especially) Han Solo have been troubled to say the least.
Zeroing in on a director more experienced with character drama and working with actors, thus leaving the action and FX work to other units, could prove to be a smart play. The only thing that gives me pause, aside from not being overly thrilled with a lot of the man’s work, is the fact that he could be set-up for failure. If Daldry turns in a more character-driven film that isn’t as heavy on bombastic action, we could be looking down the barrel of an eventual post-production hatchet job. Let’s just hope that, if he comes on board, any discrepancies involving a vision for the project are working out during development and don’t end up breeding another messy divorce.
* – McGregor had a small voice cameo in 2015’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
