The Star Wars prequels draw a lot of criticism, but there's one thing everybody can agree on: Ewan McGregor killed it as Obi-Wan Kenobi. The actor looked and sounded just like a young version of Alec Guinness, who played the character in the original trilogy. But did you ever notice with that unkempt hair and flowing robes, the Jedi Master bears a striking resemblance to a religious figure?
On the subreddit PrequelMemes, Star Wars fans celebrate every kitschy moment from the oft-maligned prequels. One Redditor joked that in Attack Of The Clones, Obi-Wan looked like Jesus Christ. This gave another Reddit user an idea for a prank. His parents are active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but not big Star Wars fans. So, for Christmas he gave them a portrait of Obi-Wan Kenobi, and let them assume it was Jesus.
The Redditor, who lives in Utah and wishes to go by Ryan, shared his experience on r/PrequelMemes: "I've made a huge mistake. Mom loves her Jesus Christmas present and I'm not sure how to get out of this thing alive when she figures it all out." When skeptics doubted the veracity of the prank, he shared a YouTube video where his parents unwrap the gift and react to it. The post got more than 37,000 upvotes, and the video has since been deleted.
Ryan explained Insider that the Ewan McGregor pic reminded him of religious portraits hanging in his childhood home: "It stuck out to me as looking like a picture we had growing up of Jesus. I kind of chased that thought to, how funny would it be if my parents didn't recognize who it was and actually hung it up on the wall. I have always tried to get away with things or pull some pranks on my family members and this seemed perfect."
Since his parents are casual moviegoers, they didn't immediately recognize the image was Ewan McGregor from Star Wars - Episode II. However, his mom is gradually recognizing that something is off:
"This morning they walked past it and my mother said something along the lines of 'there is something off about that Jesus picture. I'm not totally sure I like it'. Which went hand in hand with what she looked like as she opened it. She knew something was off but wasn't sure what. My dad kind of hung around saying it looked really familiar to him. He said 'it almost looks like Obi-wan Kenobi' but figured it was just coincidence."
After the post went viral, Ryan told his dad the truth, and he thought his hilarious, Insider reported. However, he has not told his mom yet: "As of now, I'm keeping my fingers crossed, mom doesn't know," said Ryan. "Still working on my exit plan there."
Well, if she gets mad, it's the perfect opportunity for a Star Wars quote: "If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine."
