Kumail Nanjiani is conquering the Hollywood one step at a time. He was the first Pakistani-American actor who entered the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Eternals as Kingo, and now he has achieved another milestone. Nanjiani has stepped into another major film franchise i.e. Star Wars.
The actor is now a part of the Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi, with his character, Haja Estree, appearing in the Disney+ show’s second episode. While Nanjiani has admitted he was “intimidated” acting opposite Ewan McGregor when the actor was in Obi-Wan mode, that bit of discomfort paled in comparison to all good things he experienced on this project. Now the actor is even happier about getting to be part of Obi-Wan Kenobi because he finally got the upper hand on his cousin with the better action figure collection.
“I am so overwhelmed right now. My cousin had a better collection of action figures when we were kids. I was so jealous. I think I finally pulled ahead,” he wrote. And any kid from the early to late 80s will relate to his sentiments.
I am so overwhelmed right now.
My cousin had a better collection of action figures when we were kids. I was so jealous.
I think I finally pulled ahead. pic.twitter.com/93roeUMuXu
— Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) May 27, 2022
Getting to participate in a Star Wars project, whether it’s in front of the camera or behind the scenes, is a big enough deal on its own, but Kumail Nanjiani scored something extra: his own poster. His character, Haja is on Obi-Wan Kenobi’s promotional material.
Playing a Star Wars character, namely one who received their own poster, is definitely the superior accomplishment. As a bonus, Haja gets to have Darth Vader’s silhouette in the stylistic sun covering his left eye.
Earlier, Nanjiani shared in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, how Haja Estree is someone who works on the streets of Daiyu, and he’s a con-man only concerned with looking out for himself. Upon crossing paths with Obi-Wan Kenobi though, his life is thrown for a loop.
Read: Kumail Nanjiani wears Umar Sayeed sherwani at ‘Eternals’ premiere
“His name is Haja and he’s this guy who works on the streets of Daiyu, which is this new Star Wars location that we haven’t seen before that’s absolutely gorgeous. And he’s the guy who’s worked really hard to stay out of the bigger conflicts at play. He just kind of wants to be his own guy. Survival for him is all that matters.”
Kumail Nanjiani as Haja Estree
Kumail Nanjiani is living the dream, precisely the dream of every fanboy ever and he is indeed working hard for it.
“He’s this sort of con-man guy who cons people for money. That’s what’s important to him. And then he has a run-in with Obi-Wan and suddenly he sort of gets stuck in the bigger conflicts at play, which is the thing that he really tries to avoid. So he is this street-level con-man guy who then gets embroiled in stuff that’s way too big for him. And he has to make a choice,” he explained.
Watch the trailer of the series here:
