Obi-Wan Kenobiactor Ewan McGregor may be eternally grateful for his tenure playing the iconic Jedi, but he’s set the record straight—he’s not his favoriteStar Warscharacter.McGregor first appeared as the younger version of Sir Alec Guinness’ characterin 1999’sStar Wars Episode I—The Phantom Menace, and starred as Kenobi throughout theStar Warsprequels. In 2022, McGregor returned toStar Warsand reprised his role as Kenobi in theObi-Wan KenobiDisney+ limited series.
Obi-Wan Kenobishowed part of the titular Jedi’s time between theStar Warsprequels and when he appeared on Tatooine inA New Hope. A big part of the show was Obi-Wan reconnecting with what it means to be a Jedi and putting him back on the path audiences saw him on in the originalStar Warstrilogy. This journey included saving a young Princess Leia Organa, now played by Vivien Lyra Blair, and showcased a previously unknown relationship between the two.
Ewan McGregor Names Princess Leia As His Favorite Star Wars Character
It Was Never Obi-Wan Kenobi
Soon after the release ofObi-Wan Kenobiin 2022,Ewan McGregor admitted at a convention that he thought that Princess Leia Organa was the bestStar Warscharacter, calling her“ballsy and wise-cracking, and beautiful.”These character traits certainly hold up when looking at Carrie Fisher’s portrayal of the Princess of Alderaan in the original and sequel trilogies. However, it’s clear that these also apply to Blair, who took the Leia character and made it her own, while still honoring Fisher.
McGregor also stated he had a bit of a crush on Fisher’s Leia when he was young,and consideringMcGregor’s familial ties toStar Wars, it’s not surprising that he had thought long and hard about who his favorite character is. It’s clear from how McGregor talks about his time playing Obi-Wan Kenobi that he loves the character, but it seems that sometimes, the favorites you had as a child outweigh the experiences you may have as an adult.
McGregor Finally Got The Chance To Work With Leia Himself
And It Totally Enriched Both Characters
While Ewan McGregor got to work with Princess Leia while playing Obi-Wan Kenobi, he didn’t get his childhood wish of it being Carrie Fisher, instead getting to work with Viven Lyra Blair.A big part of theObi-Wan Kenobiseries was seeing the relationship between the titular Jedi and a young Princess Leia, and it was the heart of the show. There were many aspects ofObi-Wan Kenobithat disappointed, but the camaraderie between McGregor’s Obi-Wan andBlair’s Leiawas a consistent high point in the series.
Both actors had been tasked with taking over an iconic role from the original trilogy, though McGregor had been introduced to Obi-Wan more than two decades before Blair’s turn as Leia. It’s so fitting that inObi-Wan Kenobi, Leia was the one to bring Obi-Wan back to the Jedi he was when we first met him in the prequels.Not only did Ewan McGregor work on a project featuring the Leia character, but he was also part of the story that established the relationship between the two characters, ultimately changing how we perceive their brief interaction inA New Hope.
There’s no doubt that Ewan McGregor’s legacy playing Obi-Wan Kenobi will continue, but his connection with Viven Lyra Blair’s Leia Organa will live on inStar Warslore. While it seemsObi-Wan Kenobiseason 2won’t happen and we won’t see these two characters reunited onscreen, for Ewan McGregor, it was probably awesome to share the screen with a younger version of his favoriteStar Warscharacter.
