We have learned that Todd Cherniawsky will serve as the production designer on the Obi-Wan Kenobi series for Disney+.
Cherniawsky is no stranger to the franchise having worked as the supervising art director on The Last Jedi, for which he was nominated at the Art Directors Guild in 2018 for Excellence in Production Design.
His more recent production design credits, however, are on Star Wars’ old rival Star Trek, including various episodes of Star Trek: Discovery as well as the entire first season of Star Trek: Picard.
He has also served as an art director on major films like Zero Dark Thirty, Sucker Punch, Tomorrowland, Alice in Wonderland, The BFG, and Avatar. He just wrapped production on Josh Gordon and Will Speck’s sci-fi thriller Distant for Amblin Entertainment.
Todd Cherniawsky is not the only crew member to be recently added to the Obi-Wan Kenobi series, with Chung-hoon Chung also reportedly set to serve as cinematographer. He recently wrapped filming on Sony’s live-action Uncharted film and shot Edgar Wright’s latest feature, Last Night in Soho, before that. Other recent cinematography credits of his include It and Hotel Artemis. His name is noteworthy in modern Korean cinema from shooting Oldboy and The Handmaiden, two gems in their own right.
The Obi-Wan Kenobi series is expected to begin filming in late April in Los Angeles, once The Book of Boba Fett wraps. Deborah Chow, who directed some of the best chapters of The Mandalorian, will direct all the episodes here (no official count has been announced yet). John Wick 3 and Spinning Out producer Joby Harold will serve as showrunner, with Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen set to reprise their respective roles as Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader while Indira Varma (who also stars in Mission Impossible 7) has been cast in a secret role.
Obi-Wan Kenobi is expected to release sometime in 2022, likely after the 12-episode Andor series. Unlike Lucasfilm’s other projects coming to Disney+, Ewan McGregor’s return is expected to be a one-time event. Set ten years after Revenge of the Sith, studio president Kathleen Kennedy herself has called it “the rematch of the century.” McGregor previously said that the most beautiful thing about the project is “that it’s brought me back together with Hayden.” The beloved star also confirmed that the two will have another “swing at each other”, and that the story will only begin on Tattoine before going on a “rollicking adventure.”
As to how this will fit in or affect the greater Star Wars story remains to be seen. In the meantime, get our latest production update on Lucasfilm’s other highly anticipated Disney+ show, Andor. We list the new names attached to direct and more.
