Liam Neeson briefly talks about his long-awaited return to Star Wars
Obi-Wan Kenobi finally paid off a decades-old tease in its last episode
Aux News Liam Neeson
Ever since Star Wars started doing prequel stories, it has been answering questions that maybe didn’t need answering while simultaneously introducing new questions that probably do need answering, one of which being: How the heck did Obi-Wan Kenobi learn to turn himself into a ghost so he could talk to Luke in later movies after he died? The obvious answer was “it’s a movie about space wizards who can do space magic, he probably used space magic,” but Star Wars: Episode III—Revenge Of The Sith decided to have Yoda tease that Obi-Wan’s old master Qui-Gon Jin had mastered the ability to come back as a ghost… despite nobody ever seeing him do it.
Until now! It took 20 years from when Liam Neeson’s Qui-Gon Jinn died in Star Wars: Episode I—The Phantom Menace, but he finally got around to showing up to Obi-Wan as a ghost in the closing moments of this week’s Obi-Wan Kenobi finale on Disney+. It wasn’t Neeson’s first Star Wars gig since he died in The Phantom Menace, as he previously made some cameos in the Clone Wars cartoon and during the big mess of nonsense that was the final battle of The Rise Of Skywalker, but this was the first time Star Wars actually paid off the post-Revenge Of The Sith tease with Qui-Gon showing up as a ghost and saying some folksy Jedi stuff to Obi-Wan.
The Hollywood Reporter caught up with Neeson to ask him about his long-awaited return to Star Wars, and he summed up his reason for finally returning pretty succinctly:
I certainly didn’t want anyone else playing Qui-Gon Jinn, and I wanted to show my respect for George [Lucas] and that mythical world that he created. Plus, Ewan [McGregor] is a pal, and I loved working with him during The Phantom Menace 25 years ago.
This technically wasn’t Neeson’s first time working with Disney Star Wars, but it is somewhat interesting that he specifically mentions George Lucas there. Did he delay his Star Wars return because he was waiting for the maestro to give his go-ahead, and now, so many decades later, he realized that Disney’s cash spends just as well as Lucas’? It’s not like Liam Neeson has been picky in the decades since he did a Star Wars.
Whatever finally convinced him to appear on Obi-Wan Kenobi, at least we can count this as one important canon thing that happened on the show. As it stands, Disney hasn’t said anything about Obi-Wan Kenobi coming back for another timeline-straining season, but stars Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen would at least be up for it. Maybe Qui-Gon’s ghost will stop by as well for some sidequest adventures to explain why he didn’t appear until now?
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“everything mentioned in a film is a tease until we see it on the screen”- the premise of this article
Did we need the spoiler in the headline? FFS, couldnt it wait till the weekend, at least?
It could have, but then they wouldn’t have generated the ad revenue, I guess. Sucks, it may have been telegraphed by the “previously on” but I still would have preferred having my hunches confirmed by the episode itself.
Although I’m not much more of a fan of some other outlets way of tagging spoilers: “What That Actor had to say about their triumphant return to their Famous Intellectual Property.” I see it a lot, and it’s about 5% less spoilery, while being 200% more coyly obnoxious.
So you’re saying he has a very particular set of skills, skills he has acquired over a very long career?
Yes, *sigh* I guess that’s what we’re saying.
I was saying “boo-urns.”
The white Liam Neeson*
Recently rewatched TPM – for a good chunk of the movie, Neeson is head and shoulders (no pun intended) over almost everyone around him in terms of acting. I think it speaks to his sheer talent and experience that Qui-Gon worked as well as he did. This technically wasn’t Neeson’s first time working with Disney Star Wars, but it is somewhat interesting that he specifically mentions George Lucas there.Whatever the rest of us feel about Lucas, it’s pretty clear from a lot of behind-the-scenes footage that the actors had pretty great working relationships with him, so I think this deferral from Neeson makes sense.
“Whatever the rest of us feel about Lucas, it’s pretty clear from a lot of behind-the-scenes footage that the actors had pretty great working relationships with him”
Yeah, all those stories of Harrison Ford mocking the awful dialogue really showed us a lot, didn’t they?
Qui Gon is kind of shady as a character but his sheer charisma makes up for it
Just watched it, and he is the best actor, but by far the worst green-screen actor. It’s a conundrum.
Meanwhile, Sam Jackson is by far the best green-screen actor. He said he got into acting just by playing pretend by himself a lot as a kid, and that pays off in front of the green-screen.
Wow, not that anyone’s looking for me, but by that logic, I’d kick ass on that screen.
Same!
“Okay, you’re fighting a giant outer space dragon. Come take a look at the concept art to get an idea.”
“No need, I got it. HEE-YAH!”
It’s pretty hard to judge, because wooden acting seemed to be a directorial mandate in that film. Combine that with the facts that a) the actors had nothing around them to place them in the scene and b) Lucas digitally stitched together frames from different takes so that the actors weren’t always responding to the same performances as each other, and you can’t really find a lot of fault with the actors.
I’m actually not even thinking of the green-screen work. More like when Qui-Gon’s on Tatooine with Anakin, Jar-Jar, Padme, and Shmi.
Pernilla August is solid. Jar-Jar is exhausting but that is by no means Ahmed Best’s fault. Jake Lloyd is, well, young Anakin. Natalie Portman is pretty stiff and wooden. (Not to mention all the other child actors who are, of course, also super cringe.)
It takes up a good chunk of the movie, and it’s not even a competition as to who is carrying the most weight. And like I said, I think it’s a credit to Neeson’s skill as an actor. Lucas is not a great director when it comes to characters, but Neeson (and especially McGregor in II and III) is so good at what he does that he still does wonders with the material.
“ but it is somewhat interesting that he specifically mentions George Lucas there. Did he delay his Star Wars return because he was waiting for the maestro to give his go-ahead”
What the FUCK are you talking about?
People can now take a light saber in the gut & show up later no problem. Qui Gon can come back, hurray!
Hell, people (well, “people”) can literally be cut in half by a lightsaber and come back. A stab in the gut is a doddle.
Episode 10: Spider Legs Han?
He sounded a bit off in his voice compared to TPM. Too….Irish?
The Force Awakens established that there are Scottish people in the SW Universe. So why not Irish?
There definitely should be space-Irish, but Liam just sounded different from his Phantom Menace appearance
emm, maybe Force Ghost Heaven has a lot of Space-Irish there and it rubbed off?
Obi-Wan: “I was wondering if you would ever show up, Master.”Force Ghost Qui-Gon: “Well, I was always there, you just weren’t ready to see me.”Obi-Wan: “The ‘netherworld of the Force’ has a PUB, doesn’t it?!”Force Ghost Qui-Gon: “With a holo-screen the size of a Star Destroyer & a tap that never runs out.”
Take me there now! *stabs himself
But in the face so it sticks
NO DOGS OR SPACE-IRISH
Or Chinese, as the signs in Western-only parks in colonial Shanghai apparently read. And he doesn’t look it, but Qui-Gon?
I mean, the Rebellion is basically a terrorist organization with sympathetic motives (if not actions). So a perfect fit for the Irish!
Neeson one said in an interview that, given the chance to do the role over, he just would have used his natural Irish accent instead of Englishing it all up.So this was the REAL revenge ploy all along!
Ah, if it’s in the name of sticking it to the English gobshites I’m all for it then!
After 2 plus decades of Force Ghost-ing he’s a bit more chill. I actually loved “Took you long enough!” casual line.
Liam Neeson’s first return to Star Wars after TPM was a three word voice only cameo in I believe Epusode 2 (AotC).
Reused Phantom Menace dialogue: “Anakin, drop!” to just “Anakin! Anakin!” in Clones.
I suppose he needs something to do now he’s stopped hunting black people with a knife.
Let’s just say Disney’s offer moved him…TO A BIGGER HOUSE!
Whoops I said the loud part quiet and the quiet part loud.
Guys, this headline is a pretty big spoiler, no matter how many of us expected it from the moment the show was announced.
Hey, maybe lets not spoil the last episode of a show just a day after it showed up on streaming. Maybe give it week next time?
I would usually agree, but if you saw any of the previous 5 eps, they definitely heavily suggested (through both Revenge of the Sith clips and within the new episodes) that Qui-Gonn was going to show up at some point in this series.
Of course, if you were waiting and hadn’t seen ANY of the eps, yeah, kinda ruined.
I think this is at least less dramatic a surprise cameo than Luke was at the end of Mandalorian S1, which as memory serves they also did something like this.
Agreed. Other reports (including the source one lined here) don’t reveal the actor’s name in the headline. It’s just an extra second of thought, whole load more professionalism.
Spoilers are the new G/O “house style” if you haven’t noticed, because of all the cheap hate clicks.
NEED….CLICKS….
How the heck did Obi-Wan Kenobi learn to turn himself into a ghost so he could talk to Luke in later movies after he died? We’ve known this since 2005 from Revenge of the Sith when Yoda said he would teach Obi-Wan how to commune with Qui-Gon in his exile on Tatooine. It’s obvious that’s why Lucas threw that little bit into the movie at the end, to explain how Obi-Wan learned to become a Force ghost.
I’m in my early thirties, Phantom Menace was actually the first movie I ever saw in a theatre with my Dad. I predicted this cameo in the comments thread of the first review of the first episode of Kenobi. I was the only one to my knowledge that mentioned it….
And due to my hectic work schedule, The A.V. Club has spoiled it for me. I guess it’s my fault for ever coming here before viewing it but… fuck you guys.
The Empire Strikes Back was the first film I ever saw in a cinema with my dad.I’m … a bit older than you.
Star Trek : TMP was the first movie I saw in a Cinema with my dad ,I’m probably slightly older than you!
I know that I saw Star Wars in the theaters, though I have no memory of it. I do have a teeny, vague memory of seeing Superman in the theaters a year later. ALSO WITH MY DAD!
“Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory” was the first movie I saw as a kid. The original one. In the theater. First run. I was 3. I remember the chicken head.
I’m old.
Season 2 should be a Rocky Force Training Montage Season of Qui-Gon leveling up Obi-Wan and, as seen on Clone Wars with Yoda, Force Ghost training involves bouncing around the galaxy and following the Force Priestesses, Obi-Wan is going to need someone to hang out and look after Luke so he sends Bail to take over for awhile. And there’s a mismatched buddy comedy odd couple of fussy rich Bail and grumpy Owen stuck on Tatooine.
You thoughtless twats. I’m scrollin’ Google News and THERE’S YOUR HEADLINE. I still had two episodes to go.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go click on “Hide All Stories from The AV Club” in Google News.
It’s not his best surprise cameo this year. That’s for sure
Spoiler says What?I kid. This show blows and I tuned out after the 1st 3 eps.