Star Wars: Ewan McGregor Hints at Intense Lightsaber Action in Obi-Wan Kenobi

Star Wars fans are clamoring for any details they can get about the upcoming Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi, as we know little more than the time during which the narrative takes place, though Ewan McGregor recently hinted that there will be a lot of lightsaber action, which he’s been preparing for over the course of the last few months. The first lightsaber fight fans ever saw in the series unfolded between Kenobi and Darth Vader, which emphasized the drama over the action, with McGregor’s tease implying the action in the new series will fall more in line with what we saw in the prequels than in the original trilogy.

“For months, we’ve been doing these monster, two-and-a-half-hour sessions of sword fights and hand-to-hand stuff,” McGregor shared with The Hollywood Reporter.

Since the first lightsaber duel took place on the Death Star in Star Wars: A New Hope, the intensity of the combat grew with each installment. While the original trilogy focused on the energetic and emerging Jedi Luke Skywalker taking on the exacting and precise Darth Vader, the prequel films took things to new levels, depicting both Jedi and Sith at the height of their athletic prowess. In the world of animated Star Wars series, characters aren’t bound to adhere to the restrictions of physics, allowing Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels to showcase even more elaborate bouts.

Between the events of Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, fans knew that Kenobi largely adopted a lifestyle of isolation. McGregor’s recent comments about the intensity of training could mean that Kenobi’s isolation didn’t mean he stayed out of fights, or it could mean that the new series will feature flashbacks to when the Jedi was more actively taking part in the Clone Wars.

Given that Anakin Skywalker actor Hayden Christensen is confirmed to appear in the new series, it would seem that flashbacks to the two characters being allies is the likely explanation for the training.

“It was such an incredible journey playing Anakin Skywalker,” Christensen previously said to StarWars.com. “Of course, Anakin and Obi-Wan weren’t on the greatest of terms when we last saw them… It will be interesting to see what an amazing director like Deborah Chow has in store for us all. I’m excited to work with Ewan again. It feels good to be back.”

Stay tuned for details on Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi.

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