You can’t tell Obi-Wan Kenobi’s extended backstory in a standalone solo film if that backstory will spoil the secrets of Star Wars: Episode VIII and Star Wars: Episode IX.
New rumors suggest that the reason a standalone Obi-Wan anthology film is being delayed is because Lucasfilm isn’t “done with Obi-Wan quite yet …” The rumor comes from EW’s famous Anthony Breznican, a reporter who often has a deep inside scoop on Star Wars machinations. Speaking to Rebel Force Radio, and excerpted by StarWarsNews.net, Breznican mentioned the that he “heard rumors” that an Obi-Wan movie can’t move forward because new information about Obi-Wan Kenobi will show up in the current “saga” trilogy.
“I wouldn’t be surprised to see an Obi-Wan [standalone] happen beyond Episode IX … I think that [there will] probably be some reference to Obi-Wan in the Saga films, and his connection to whatever characters he happens to have a connection with. I’ve already written that I think that Rey has some kind of connection to him — family connection …”
Who's your distant relative? Mine might be Ben Kenobi!
Obviously, this is only a rumor, but it’s a rumor from a high-profile journalist with access to people at Lucasfilm, giving it more viability than random script “leaks” on Reddit or YouTube. Still, creating a blood connection between Rey and Obi-Wan Kenobi would be a huge Star Wars curveball. Though this idea comes up in fan theory conversations about Rey’s parentage a lot, it seems like a narrative cheat that Obi-Wan Kenobi had even more secrets than he possessed in the original Star Wars trilogy. We know Obi-Wan is good at keeping secrets, but come on.
While it’s unclear if Jedi are allowed to have sex in Obi-Wan’s time, they were certainly disallowed from marrying and having children. But maybe Obi-Wan decided to throw all those rules out the window while he was hanging out on Tatooine, watching over Luke. Because if Rey’s lineage is revealed to be a part of a line of secret little Kenobis, the Star Wars story will be retconned more than a just a little bit.
During her vision in The Force Awakens, the last person who spoke to Rey was Obi-Wan saying gently, “These are your first steps.” If his ghost — as played by Ewan McGregor — shows up in the next few saga films, maybe he’ll be spilling even more beans than he did in Return of the Jedi. Is Obi-Wan Rey’s grandfather? Uncle? Brother-in-law? Will Star Wars ever stop loving the secret-family-member trope?
The next Star Wars film is Rogue One, which opens on December 16. If Obi-Wan makes a surprise appearance in that movie, he’ll officially be photo-bombing the entire franchise.
