A new Star Wars action figure is coming to Fortnite, and all of us win because it's Ewan McGregor.
The Obi-Wan Kenobi star will make his Fortnite debut on May 26 at 8pm ET, Epic Games confirms. That's the night before McGregor at long last returns to the Star Wars universe as the famed Jedi Master in a new Disney+ series. The highlight of the tie-in for most players is surely the for-purchase Outfit that lets you dress up as McGregor's space fantasy hero in-game.
Fortnite is also adding a handful of other Star Wars knickknacks to go with the Outfit. There's the "Desert Essentials" Back Bling, a rugged-yet-high-tech-looking backpack that's included when you buy the Outfit. On top of that, there's the "Obi Wan's Message" emote, a Glider inspired by his Jedi Interceptor spacecraft, and the "Obi-Wan's Blade" pickaxe. No, it's not a lightsaber— just a knife.
(Fun fact: Although Star Wars has crossed over with Fortnite many times and lightsabers have appeared before as a weapon for certain limited-time events, there's never been a lightsaber pickaxe.)
Those who are really good at Fortnite will have a chance to score the Outfit and Back Bling early. Epic is hosting a "Duos" tournament — if you don't speak Fortnite, that means it's a competition for two-player squads only — on Sunday, May 22, and the top winners will get the two items for free before they arrive in the Item Shop.
As an added incentive to play, Epic is bringing back the Star Wars lightsaber and E-11 blaster rifle weapons just for the tournament.
Obi-Wan Kenobi premieres May 27 on the Disney+ streaming service. The series picks up about 10 years after the events of 2005's Revenge of the Sith, when Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) betrayed his friend and master Obi-Wan, completing his turn to the Dark Side and transformation into Darth Vader.
While Christensen and McGregor both have lent their voices to animated Star Wars series in the time since Sith, the Disney+ series marks the first time that both actors will be stepping back into their live-action Star Wars roles. We don't know how or even if they'll meet, but the Disney+ story kicks off with Obi-Wan keeping watch over a young Luke Skywalker as he grows up on the desert planet of Tatooine.
