Famed actor Liam Neeson (Excaliber, Schindler’s List, Kinsey, The A-Team) began his acting career in 1978 with Pilgrim’s Progress. He didn’t make his Star Wars debut until over 20 years later, in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999) — but, his character, Qui-Gon Jinn, had an instant impact on the Star Wars fan community.
Jinn was Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi’s (Ewan McGregor) Jedi Master and, although he swiftly met his demise in a lightsaber duel with Darth Maul (Ray Park) in the first prequel trilogy film, fans have wanted more of the somewhat wayward Jedi ever since.
However, the Star Wars actor has weighed in on what a Force Ghost version of Jinn should tell Kenobi. In an interview with ReelBlend’s Jake Hamilton, Neeson shared that his words to his former Padawan would be:
“Keep on trucking Obi-Wan! Keep on trucking, baby, and may the Force be with you always.”
Although Neeson has seemingly confirmed he won’t be coming back in Deborah Chow’s Obi-Wan Kenobi — it would, admittedly, require de-aging technology like what was used on Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker in The Mandalorian to make Neeson look like he did at the time of Qui-Gon Jinn’s death over 20 years ago — we could potentially hear his voice in the Kenobi series.
A venerable if maverick Jedi Master, Qui-Gon Jinn was a student of the living Force. Qui-Gon lived for the moment, espousing a philosophy of “feel, don’t think — use your instincts.” On Tatooine, Qui-Gon discovered a young slave boy named Anakin Skywalker who was strong in the Force. Sensing the boy’s potential, Qui-Gon liberated Anakin from slavery. The Jedi Master presented Anakin to the Jedi Council, but they deemed the boy too old to begin training and dangerously full of fear and anger. They refused to allow Qui-Gon to train Anakin, but rescinded their decision to fulfill Qui-Gon’s dying wish.
As for Obi-Wan Kenobi, viewers can catch the streaming series on Disney+ sometime in 2022. An exact release date has not been revealed.
We do know, however, that the series will take place approximately 10 years after Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005) and will follow Ben Kenobi’s self-imposed exile on Tattooine. Bonnie Piesse and Joel Edgerton will also return in their prequel trilogy roles as Luke Skywalker’s aunt and uncle, Beru and Owen Lars.
Credit: Lucasfilm
