Ever since it was announced that Ewan McGregor will be reprising his Star Wars character Obi-Wan Kenobi for a limited series on Disney+, the fandom has been abuzz with rumors of other iconic Star Wars characters returning for their own spinoffs. But one character who might not be returning is Qui-Gon Jinn, played by Liam Neeson. The actor revealed to Collider that he has not been approached for any upcoming Star Wars fare.
“I’ve done the voice for Qui-Gon Jinn in a couple of the animated versions of it. I can’t remember the names of them. Myself and Sam Jackson did our Jedi knights for those. I think I did two of them. But on film, I haven’t been approached, no. I haven’t really been following them, to be honest. I don’t know if they’ve come to an end. I heard they did a film of Harrison [Ford]’s character, Han Solo, and that there was a bit of trouble with that.”
While the “trouble” associated with the release of Solo: A Star Wars Story was no more extreme than the usual kind of complaints by passionate fans who felt the movie did not handle certain aspects of Han Solo’s backstory properly, the film was a reasonable hit at the box-office, and certainly did not stand in the way of the success of the later Star Wars spinoff series The Mandalorian. A spinoff film or series featuring Neeson’s character would also be an intriguing show for Disney to develop for its streaming service.
Qui-Gon Jinn was one of the main protagonists of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, and appeared in several subsequent movies, animations, comics, etc. in the Star Wars universe. At the age of 60, Jinn was a Jedi Master and the mentor of a 25-year old Obi-Wan Kenobi. It was Jinn who discovered in a child named Anakin Skywalker the potential to be the “Chosen One”, destined to bring balance to the Force.
Although Jinn did not survive his first movie appearance, his ghost did make a few appearances in the story later as a Force apparition. Despite the mixed reviews that Phantom Menace received, Liam Neeson stated earlier this year that he is proud of the movie, and felt sorry for the fan vitriol his co-star Ahmed Best was subjected to:
“I like the film. I was proud. I got to be a Jedi. I got to play with those wonderful lightsabers and stuff. It was terrific, Andy, it really was. [Ahmed Best, who played Jar Jar Binks] came into a lot of criticism, I mean to the point where it really hurt his career. And I have to say when I was making that film … he was probably one of the funniest guys and talented guys I have ever worked with.”
While a Qui-Gon Jinn series/movie seems unlikely at this point, it is not impossible for Neeson to pop up in the upcoming Obi-Wan series for a cameo, or even a supporting role. That would be the icing on the cake for Star Wars fans. This news arrives from our good friend at Collider.