Brad Elliott served as the head of the property department for the television show Obi-Wan Kenobi. Elliott and his team were responsible for creating various props utilized in the show, such as Inquisitor lightsabers, Obi-Wan Kenobi's lightsaber, wupiupi coins, a power hammer, a thermal detonator, spice containers, Tala Durith's holster, and a scomp link for the TR-286 cargo transport shuttle.
When he was six, Brad Elliott's first experience with Star Wars left him completely amazed as he exited the cinema. Elliott held the position of propmaster for the Obi-Wan Kenobi series. To prepare, he rewatched all the preceding Star Wars films to better understand the aesthetic from which the show would evolve. This process aided in reshaping his understanding of iconic props like Obi-Wan Kenobi's lightsaber. Elliott utilized resources provided by Lucasfilm creative executive Pablo Hidalgo and consistently looked to the works of Ralph McQuarrie for inspiration. He greatly depended on the same methods used by prop builders in Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. His team incorporated items from the 1920s to the 1960s to ensure the props felt authentic to the Star Wars universe. Elliott and his team received direction from executive producer and director Deborah Chow.
In an initial meeting with Chow and Dave Filoni to discuss how to transform the animated Inquisitor lightsabers into realistic props, Filoni advised Elliott to envision the live-action version as the original, with the animated version being an exaggerated interpretation. This approach allowed Elliott to maintain the established form of the props from the animated series while adapting them for human hands. All four Inquisitor lightsabers were modified to fit the actors playing the roles, including Rupert Friend and Sung Kang. Elliott and his team took care to minimize the more delicate aspects of the animated designs, ensuring that the size of the rings and handles were appropriate for the characters using them. Elliott mentioned that Kenobi's lightsaber presented the biggest challenge for his team because the lightsaber from Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith had several differences compared to the one seen in A New Hope.
When creating the wupiupi props, Elliott's team had only one reference image from Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace, which indicated that the coin was slightly larger than an American half dollar. Deborah Chow was concerned that the size was too large for quick transactions, so the coins were slightly reduced in size while retaining the original design. Elliott and Pablo Hidalgo discussed the appearance of the coins and their correct exchange rate with truguts and credits. This discussion helped them determine the cost of common items in Star Wars and a minimum wage for the whale-carving station where Obi-Wan Kenobi worked. They decided that a full shift would pay one trugut and three wupiupi. The team produced at least four prop coins, each designed with intricate details.
The script described NED-B's hammer as a power hammer. Because Elliott was unsure of the exact meaning, he drew design inspiration from the guards on Jabba the Hutt's skiff. He incorporated a similar power unit and rigid tubing to suggest that the hammer utilized power assist for increased impact. The thermal detonator used by Tala Durith was inspired by the one held by Leia Organa in Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi. Elliott acquired a Master Replicas thermal detonator and disassembled it. The propmaster's team then rewired the electronics to function as Chow envisioned for the series. Elliott discovered that using existing merchandise was more efficient than creating something entirely new from scratch. The spice canisters were designed in a shape and style reminiscent of Jabba the Hutt's hookah pipe. Elliott explained that the concept involved a pressurized canister that released spice when a button was pressed.
The propmakers were tasked with creating a holster suitable for both young Leia Organa and the adult Tala Durith. Elliott considered this a challenge due to the height differences between the actors and the need to accommodate Lola, Organa's droid, and Durith's blaster. Durith's holster was designed as a drop holster. For Organa, the team removed the drop portion from the gun belt, resulting in a perfect fit. To accommodate Lola, a Han Solo-style scope was added to Durith's blaster. Elliott expressed his satisfaction with the final holster design. In the series' script, the TR-286 cargo transport shuttle was described as an "automated transport," leading Elliott to believe that a launch key designed for humans would be illogical. The team opted for a rigged scomp link computer interface device with its own circuit board to simulate how an astromech droid would initiate the transport's launch sequence and program its route.
- Obi-Wan Kenobi — " Part I "
- Obi-Wan Kenobi — " Part II "
- Obi-Wan Kenobi — " Part III "
- Obi-Wan Kenobi — " Part IV "
- Obi-Wan Kenobi — " Part V "
- Obi-Wan Kenobi — " Part VI "
- Inside the Lucasfilm Archive: An Elegant Weapon and Other Jedi Artifacts from the Obi-Wan Kenobi Limited Series on StarWars.com (backup link)
- Inside the Lucasfilm Archive: Weapons of the Inquisitorius from the Obi-Wan Kenobi Limited Series on StarWars.com (backup link)
- Inside the Lucasfilm Archive: A Brewing Rebellion in the Obi-Wan Kenobi Limited Series on StarWars.com (backup link)