Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi Writer Breaks Down Connection to Kylo Ren

When the new Obi-Wan Kenobi series was first announced, Lucasfilm immediately let fans know that it would take place between Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars: A New Hope, and that it would pull back the curtain on Obi-Wan’s time in solitude after Order 66. What no one knew, however, was that the series was actually going to develop the relationship between Obi-Wan and Leia. We all have a better idea of why she turned to Obi-Wan as her “only hope,” and the most recent episode further solidified why she chose to name her child after the old Jedi.

As we learned in the Sequel Trilogy, Leia and Han Solo named their child Ben, obviously after Kenobi (who went by Ben while in hiding). In the Original Trilogy, Leia doesn’t have much interaction with Obi-Wan. This series is finally providing some insight into why Obi-Wan meant so much to Leia. Obi-Wan Kenobi writer Joby Harold spoke with The Hollywood Reporter about how the series aimed to explore that bond.

“It was very helpful to know where they were going because it answers the question of, ‘Why him?’ So, ‘Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You’re my only hope,’ feels less arbitrary as a choice and a decision now that we know the depth of the history they have together,” Harold explained. “The context within which Leia says that in A New Hope is now canon, and it’s clear. So it will be articulated as the show continues, but I liked the fact that it helped reinforce and better articulate a little piece of the jigsaw that is already in place.” 

“If you watch all of the Star Wars stories in a row right now, you’d be like, ‘Of course, she’s going to go to Obi-Wan.’ She also ends up naming her son, Ben,” Harold continued. “So I liked the fact that he was a big component in her life, as much as he was in Luke’s life up until now. It felt right after everything that happened with Anakin and those two children that he would be there for both children, to the degree he now has been in canon.”

Ben Kenobi was a significant figure in the life of young Leia Organa, saving her from the Inquisitors when she was just 10 years old and helping to paint her a picture of exactly who her birth mother was.

Have you enjoyed seeing Obi-Wan and Leia’s relationship play out in Obi-Wan Kenobi? Let us know in the comments!