Star Wars: Ewan McGregor Surprises Fans at Phantom Menace Rerelease

This May the 4th has certainly been an eventful one for Star Wars fans. Disney and Lucasfilm rereleased Star Wars: The Phantom Menace back into theaters for its 25th anniversary, and its return to the big screen has been wildly successful. The Phantom Menace pulled in more than $8 million at the box office over the weekend, finishing second domestically despite being more than two decades old. As it turns out, fans of the film weren’t the only ones heading out to see it.

Ewan McGregor, who made his Star Wars debut as Obi-Wan Kenobi in The Phantom Menace, made a surprise appearance at one of the film’s screenings over the weekend. In the photo below, you can see McGregor in front of a crowd at a screening of The Phantom Menace, microphone in hand and addressing those in attendance. Take a look!

View on X

McGregor first appeared as the younger Obi-Wan in 1999, taking over for Sir Alec Guinness who originated the role in 1977’s Star Wars. The actor would go on to reprise the role in the rest of the prequel trilogy. He returned back in 2022, bridging the gap between the prequels and original trilogy for a limited series on Disney+.

Since that show’s debut, Star Wars fans have wondered if they will see McGregor again, especially considering how much love he has for the role.

“The truth is I’ve talked about having to cover for doing the Obi-Wan season for years, I had to lie about that and I’m not lying about this now,” McGregor told LADbible. “I don’t know. There’s been no phone call to me from Lucasfilm, or Disney saying, ‘Let’s do another one.’ Obi-Wan was made as a limited series and it’s out and people like it, which I’m very, very pleased about. I love doing it. I hope we get a chance to do another one and I’m sure we will. I’m pretty sure, you know, I’ve got a few years yet before I’m the same age as Alec Guinness was in [Star Wars:] A New Hope. So there’s time to tell more stories in there.”

The Phantom Menace continues its latest run in theaters into the week. The film is also streaming on Disney+, along with the rest of the Star Wars franchise.