New Star Wars Theory Explains Why Obi-Wan "Lied" About The Droids

Star Wars gets a lot of grief for the lies it tells: who shot first, that the Jedi can't kill, that the Cantina is the scummiest place in the galaxy... And none gets more confused attention than Obi-Wan's pretence that he doesn't remember owning any droids in the original trilogy. He didn't own them, but the point of the line is supposed to be that he doesn't even recognise them - they are inconsequential to him.

You could explain his statement that he couldn't "seem to remember" as his commitment to avoiding dealing in absolutes, or that he's actually correct because he DIDN'T ever own any and was just trying to keep his cover. But a new fan theory suggests he actually says it because he's just a nice guy.

The established theory goes that George Lucas just ran rough-shod over his original writing and changed R2's backstory when the prequels have him a money boner, but actually, the more compelling idea states that his refusal to admit ownership of the little droid is actually an acknowledgment of his worth.

Here's the theory, which appeared on Reddit:

"We saw how much R2 did and accomplished in ep 1-3, and how much the heroes owe to him. He practically saved their asses a dozen times over. When Obi-Wan says that controversial line of never having owned a Droid, he has a little glint in his eyes. He's not saying "keep quiet you, you'll blow our cover." he's saying no mother... in this galaxy can own R2, he's intelligent and reliable in a way no other Droid has been. He is correcting Luke about droid ownership."

So he was actually being progressive: he was striking a blow against the slavery of droids, and stating that no, he didn't own R2, he was his friend, his equal, his hero.