A surprise announcement from Disney+ reveals that the premiere of Obi-Wan Kenobi will begin streaming on the service three hours earlier than expected.
On Thursday evening, the official Star Wars Twitter shared a message saying, "The time for #ObiWanKenobi has arrived…early. Start streaming the first two episodes on @disneyplus TONIGHT at 9PM PT." The original plan for the show's release followed the usual streaming practice of timing new shows for midnight, generally in the US Pacific time zone, so that they're immediately available to watch as soon as the premiere date arrives. However, Obi-Wan Kenobi's new time means that its release date is no longer May 27, but May 26.
Star Wars fans who are eager to watch the first episodes, or those who aren't able to stay up late enough to watch as soon as they're available, will doubtless be excited by this news. Obi-Wan Kenobi, featuring the returns of Ewan McGregor as the titular Jedi and Hayden Christensen as Anakin Skywalker soon after his turn to the dark side, is one of the most highly anticipated Star Wars projects of all those that are in development.
Disney+ has been teasing the premiere of Obi-Wan Kenobi with a supercut of Star Wars scenes, in addition to numerous interviews with cast and crew members.
Christensen last appeared as the iconic villain Darth Vader in the 2005 final film of the prequel trilogy, Revenge of the Sith. Although audiences had mixed reactions to his portrayal of the character, Christensen was optimistic about his decision to reprise the role. "I mean, it’s all on the table, but you know, that doesn’t get factored into these types of decisions for me," he said.
Obi-Wan Kenobi finds McGregor as Obi-Wan on the run from Christensen's Vader, as well as from the deadly Imperial Inquisitors that are tasked with hunting down the remaining members of his order. The events of the new series are set ten years after the conclusion of Revenge of the Sith. Other returning cast members include Joel Edgerton and Bonnie Piesse as Owen and Beru Lars, respectively, and a young Luke Skywalker will also be appearing in the classic Star Wars setting of the desert planet Tatooine.
The first two episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi are available to stream now on Disney+.
Source: Twitter
