Disney+ has announced a new premiere date for Obi-Wan Kenobi. Why is the bearded Jedi making his return on a Friday, rather than a Wednesday?
Why does Ewan McGregor's Obi-Wan Kenobi Disney+ series begin on a Friday, rather than the previously announced Wednesday slot? Disney+ has enjoyed great success with its original Star Wars output thus far. The Mandalorian came first, with both seasons airing primarily on Fridays. Star Wars: The Bad Batch followed a similar pattern, but then Lucasfilm's most recent effort, The Book of Boba Fett, shifted to Wednesdays. Marvel shows made a similar move, with Loki beginning a change in episode days from Friday to Wednesday.
Initially, Obi-Wan appeared to be keeping the platform's established Wednesday release pattern. Back in February 2022, Disney+ announced Obi-Wan Kenobi would premiere on Wednesday, May 25 and run for six consecutive weeks. As per an announcement from Ewan McGregor himself, that's no longer the case. The opening two episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi now premiere on Friday, May 27 - two days later than originally planned. From there, the remaining 4 episodes will drop on the intended Wednesday slot. In charge of scheduling, Yoda presumably was.
McGregor's announcement neglects to explain why Obi-Wan Kenobi has moved its premiere date from Wednesday to Friday, nor has Disney followed up with additional details. As ever, streaming services work in mysterious ways. One possible factor is 2022's Star Wars Celebration event. The Anaheim convention runs from May 26 to May 29, so whereas Obi-Wan Kenobi's premiere previously would've missed the festivities, episodes 1 & 2 now land right as the event gets into full swing, allowing Lucasfilm and Disney to better exploit the excitement with special screenings, merchandise and whatnot. Another possibility is that Disney+ intends to battle head-to-head against Netflix, which has Stranger Things season 4 also premiering May 27. With Stranger Things arguably the biggest original TV series in streaming, Disney may fancy Obi-Wan Kenobi's chances against Eleven and the gang, and are hoping to draw subscription fees from customers only willing to buy one service.
Obi-Wan Kenboi's move to Friday does raise several issues. Ms. Marvel is currently slated to premiere Wednesday, June 8, clashing with Ewan McGregor's bearded Jedi. Knocking back the entirety of Obi-Wan's TV show to the Friday shift would've alleviated that problem, but because only the opening two episodes have changed dates, there'll still be a franchise clash across three weeks. Secondly, Obi-Wan Kenobi's original release date was perfect. May 25th 2022 marks the 45th anniversary of Star Wars' theatrical premiere, and Obi-Wan making his grand return on Disney+ would've been the perfect way to celebrate. He'll now be two days late to the party, arriving just in time to find a hungover Chewbacca and a confused Luke Skywalker pointing a lightsaber at his own face.
When all is said and done, the excitement of Obi-Wan Kenobi's return to Star Wars - alongside Hayden Christensen's Darth Vader, no less - will inevitably outweigh which day of the week the show's premiere falls. Honoring the 45th anniversary would've been nice, and the Ms. Marvel bottleneck may give viewers a dilemma, but Ewan McGregor's comeback has been 17 years in the making. We can handle waiting another two days for Obi-Wan Kenobi.
