Given the tenacity Star Wars fans usually showcase in gatekeeping all the things they love about the galaxy far, far away, it’s no wonder that Natalie Holt didn’t really know what to do with Obi-Wan Kenobi‘s score and whether it’d be appropriate to incorporate John Williams’ work into the show’s novel motifs.
The composer recently discussed the process of coming up with the story’s new original soundtrack in a chat with Collider, revealing that the team was essentially lost until Williams came aboard and gave them direction.
“Well, we weren’t sure if we were going to be allowed to use John’s themes, because he wasn’t on board with his Kenobi theme yet at that point. So at the beginning, it was a bit more like, ‘We want to do something bold and new and different for Star Wars,’ maybe more minimal or more emotional and spare.
Once John came on board, it was a problem because it’s like, ‘Oh gosh, but how are people going to feel if they’re seeing Darth Vader, and they’re not hearing his theme, and there’s no payoff in Episode 6?’ I can’t write a new Darth Vader theme. I was a bit worried about that.”
Luckily, Williams knew how to circumvent the challenge, and thus was the original Obi-Wan Kenobi soundtrack composed.
“But John coming on board, he watched it through and gave permission for us to use his themes in Episode 6, and in various points, and so that unlocked the style palette a bit. And him writing that Kenobi theme. Yeah. It just made it more clear, like, ‘Okay, he’s set the tone, and I’ve got the tent poles now, the parameters within which to write.'”
The soundtrack certainly isn’t the best of what the galaxy far, far away has to offer in terms of emotional and moving music due to its extensive history, and nor is it Williams’ best work, for that matter, but it nevertheless bears the legendary composer’s distinct creative touch. So, while there were no true reprisals for “Duel of the Fates” or “Battle of Heroes,” the score remains one of the stronger elements in Obi-Wan Kenobi.