Padme & Obi-Wan Shippers Rejoice: ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’ Says He Wishes He Were Leia’s Daddy

Obi-Wan Kenobi Episode 3 left this long-time Star Wars fan hooting and hollering and damn near gasping for breath. Nope, not because we finally saw a new “duel” between Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and his fallen apprentice Darth Vader (body by Hayden Christensen, voice by James Earl Jones).

Rather, I was floored that Obi-Wan Kenobi would once again tease one of the franchise’s most delicious “crack ships.” When young Leia (Vivien Lyra Blair) point blank asks Obi-Wan if he’s her real father, you could hear legions of #Obidala fan fiction writers cry out in ecstasy. Obi-Wan’s regret-tinged response on double downed on the idea that, hey, maybe Obi-Wan Kenobi had a thing for Padmé Amidala (Natalie Portman)?

Obi-Wan/Padmé shippers will be feasting today on the crumbs that Obi-Wan Kenobi on Disney+ has once again served them! Obidala lives and it’s all thanks to Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Obi-Wan Kenobi is of course the new Disney+ series set smack between Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope. Obi-Wan Kenobi is a fractured version of his former self. He is traumatized by the events of Revenge of the Sith, blaming himself for Anakin’s fall into the Dark Side of the Force. Kenobi believes his only purpose now is to stay hidden, stay safe, and to keep vigil over Anakin and Padmé’s son Luke (Grant Feely). His plans are interrupted when young Princess Leia is kidnapped and Bail Organa (Jimmy Smits) calls upon the old Jedi Master to save the girl.

In Obi-Wan Kenobi Episode 2, Ben mentions to young Leia that she reminds him of someone he used to know. While it’s possible that the deceased “leader” he’s referring to is Duchess Satine of Mandalore, the implication is he’s talking about Leia’s mother, Padmé. This is basically confirmed in Obi-Wan Kenobi Episode 3. Stranded on the mining world of Mapuzo, Obi-Wan and Leia find themselves hitching a ride with a pro-Empire alien named Freck (Zach Braff). He soon, in turn, offers a ride to a bunch of Imperial Stormtroopers. Leia improvises a backstory about how her “father” wanted to show her the place where he met her mother. Obi-Wan adds a sad slant to the story, but accidentally calls Leia by her real name, putting the Stormtroopers on alert. It’s only when he earnestly says “Luma” reminds him so much of her mother “Leia,” that they shake off their would be captors.

Leia, however, is now suspicious. As soon as they lose the Stormtroopers, Leia accuses Obi-Wan of knowing her real mother. He tries to say it’s “just a story,” but she is certain he’s hiding something. She finally asks, “Are you my real father?” Kenobi’s careful response? “I wish I could say I was, but no, I’m not.”

Now obviously Obi-Wan wishes he could say he was Leia’s father and not, you know, Darth Vader, because that’s a whole lot of Dark Side drama for the kid, but the way he says this feels even more loaded than that. He seems to truly wish he were Leia’s daddy. This, plus the way Obi-Wan talks about Padmé open the door for…Obidala?

Obidala is the popular portmanteau associated with fan theories, fan fiction, fan art, and general wistful dreaming about a version of Star Wars where Obi-Wan Kenobi and Padmé Amidala were secretly in love. There is a compelling argument to be made that a love triangle between Anakin, Padmé, and Obi-Wan would have given the prequel trilogy even more angst than what’s already there. The films themselves hint that Anakin thinks there is something between his Master and wife when Obi-Wan hitches a ride on Padmé’s ship to face him on Mustafar.

But besides deleted scenes from Revenge of the Sith that hint at a closer friendship between Obi-Wan and Padmé, there hasn’t been anything to really confirm a tighter connection until now. After all, in The Clone Wars, Obi-Wan was ride or die for Satine. Padmé was just a friend. It’s only the way he talks about her around Leia that could make one wonder if he harbored feelings for the Queen and Senator from Naboo.

While we highly doubt Obi-Wan Kenobi will explicitly reveal that Obi-Wan was holding a torch for Padmé all these years, it’s still nice to see that he was clearly affected by her loss. Obi-Wan Kenobi might be a Jedi, but he’s also human. He’s loved and lost, and that has to have an effect on him as a person.

And even if Obidala is not canon, it sure is juicy and fun to see a TV show in 2022 toy with the emotions of a die-hard little corner of Star Wars fandom.