Liam Neeson says he’d come back as Qui-Gon Jinn… but only in a movie.

Ooooooh… Liam Neeson, you’re a national treasure in this part of the world but are you telling us porkies?

In a new interview, the Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace star was asked about the news/rumours that he will appear in next month’s highly, highly anticipated Obi-Wan Kenobi series starring Ewan McGregor in the title role.

Now, for context, we have reported in the past that Neeson has said he is retiring from acting but would come back to play Qui-Gon (here) and that he’d love to appear in an Obi-Wan movie with McGregor (here) but we have also reported that word is he is coming back for the Kenobi series (here), so he’s no stranger to the question about a possible return to Star Wars.

Now, in light of all the rumours that he is returning for the Kenobi series, the star was asked, once more, about returning to the role and his response was enthusiastic but seems to dispel any of the current rumors: “Oh, I think so, yeah, yeah, yeah, I think so if it was a film. Yeah, I’m a bit of a snob when it comes to TV, I must admit, I just like the big screen, you know?

“Qui-Gon, I can’t believe it’s 24 years since we made [Star Wars:] The Phantom Menace, I just cannot believe where the time has gone. It was a terrific experience, shooting that film in London.”  

Now, this answer is perfectly believable and makes sense BUT it doesn’t really apply to Neeson. Why? Well, the star has previously voiced Qui-Gonn in Star Wars: The Clone Wars but, aside from that, he recently starred in hit Irish series Derry Girls and, before that, he appeared in Ricky Gervais’ Extras, The Orville and more, so he’s definitely not that much of a snob.

However, we feel we should remind you that Neeson has previously made it clear that he wasn’t going to be doing any more Star Wars movies, or anything like them, saying: “The first Star Wars, I was in that, that was 22 years ago, and I enjoyed that, because it was novel and that was new. I was acting to tennis balls, which were ultimately going to be little fuzzy furry creatures and stuff. That was interesting, acting-wise, to try and make that seem real, but that was the last. It’s quite exhausting.” 

So, is he deflecting now? Well, this smells a little like Andrew Garfield’s constant denial that he was set to appear in Spider-man: No Way Home to us (here)… but we could be wrong… maybe Neeson hasn’t been asked to appear in the Obi-wan series but we find that very unlikely given how important Qui-Gon, and his Force Ghost, would be to this story.

But it doesn’t seem terribly likely to us. What do you all think? Let me know your thoughts, gang.