There are always a bunch of Star Wars rumors floating around at any given time but the last week or so has been ridiculous. Ever since a story surfaced that Star Wars spinoffs were being put on hold, somehow that didn't stop reports on them (Which would be logical, right?) but has only seen them increase in number. The latest has the movies still going forward, although Boba Fett and Obi-Wan films may be reevaluated in order to avoid another failure like Solo: A Star Wars Story.
So let's dive into a few of the latest whispers going around the Internet, or at least the ones I deem to have the most merit. The first two have to do with the Obi-Wan movie and its cloudy future. Most recently we'd heard that Stephen Daldry may be off as director, but there were no details as to why or when it happened? ThePlaylist now adds a rumor they heard months ago that Daldry had left the film and that may be why Lucasfilm never offered a confirmation of his hiring. Makes sense, but it leaves the question open as to his replacement, especially if the hope is to start production next year as has long been suspected.
Speaking of which, the 2019 timeframe for Obi-Wan would put it in the ballpark of Disney's streaming service launch. Is it possible they could be considering it as an exclusive for those who pony up for the subscription service? That's another rumor going around and honestly, it's what I've expected Disney to do from the beginning. What better way to get people to sign up than to give them a Star Wars movie they can't get anywhere else?
While rumors of Ewan McGregor's return as the Jedi master have been going around for years, it hasn't been confirmed. That was always for his own standalone movie, though, not as part of the core trilogy. The Sun is hearing different, though, and they say McGregor may appear as Obi-Wan in Star Wars: Episode 9. The gossip site doesn't have further information, and their cred with this sort of thing is sketchy at best, but I feel like there's a possibility of this happening. Think of how we were all taken aback by Yoda's surprise appearance in The Last Jedi. It proved pivotal, and Obi-Wan could have similarly important information to pass along to Rey as she battles Kylo Ren.
Finally, the popular Star Wars fansite Making Star Wars says they've caught wind of a different spinoff movie that was cancelled or postponed, and it isn't Obi-Wan Kenobi or Boba Fett. It's actually a film that would center on the Mos Eisley Spaceport, y'know, that "wretched hive of scum and villainy" seen in A New Hope? The Tatooine cantina is where Luke and Obi-Wan (there's that name again) first meet up with Han Solo and Chewbacca, and it undoubtedly has ties to the Star Wars criminal underground. The series probably would have involved Jabba the Hutt since he lived on Tatooine and runs its most dangerous criminal networks.
While the site doesn't say it, I wonder if the Mos Eisley film would have been a followup of sorts to the storyline threads dropped in Solo: A Star Wars Story. It goes pretty deep into the galaxy's underbelly and even re-introduces Maul during his crime boss phase. Could Solo's failure be the cause of this project being tossed into limbo?
You know the drill. None of this stuff is remotely confirmed and who knows if it ever will be. The most we've gotten out of Lucasfilm is that things aren't slowing down, but I have to believe they are giving everything a harder look for the time being.
