Haja Estree

Haja Estree was a human male con artist who worked on the planet Daiyu during the reign of the Galactic Empire. A master of illusion, Estree ran a scam on Daiyu where he convinced people he was one of the Jedi—Force-sensitive peacekeepers that had been hunted and killed by the Empire—and helped those in need in exchange for credits for his services. He partnered with the young boy Jayco who would find potential clients and lead them to Estree. Estree helped a mother and her son get off Daiyu while former Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi watched. Kenobi approached Estree and told him he required his services in finding a kidnapped girl, the Alderaanian Princess Leia Organa. Estree agreed to help after Kenobi uncovered his scam and directed Kenobi to a spice den.
Shortly after, when the Inquisitor Third Sister put a bounty on Kenobi, Jayco informed Estree of the bounty, and they went to locate him. Estree found Kenobi and Organa, but not before bounty hunter droid 1-JAC came up behind the pair. Estree shot 1-JAC and gave Kenobi instructions to get to a cargo transport that would lead to the planet Mapuzo. Kenobi reluctantly agreed, and Estree informed him he was not alone and said he would try to delay the Inquisitors as long as possible. Estree found the Third Sister in an alley, but she quickly realized he was not a Jedi before probing his mind for Kenobi's location.
Now wanted by the Empire, Estree headed for the planet Jabiim, where he regrouped with members and refugees of The Path—an anti-Imperial network that sheltered Jedi and force-sensitive beings—as well as Kenobi and Organa. Estree watched over Organa at the request of Kenobi after the latter had gone on to face the Third Sister. After the Imperial raid on the facility and the subsequent escape from the planet, the members of the Path fled from the Imperial I-class Star Destroyer Devastator and Sith Lord Darth Vader. Kenobi decided to part ways with the Path to buy them time, and Estree promised he would get Organa back home. Estree also comforted Organa after she grew angry with Kenobi for leaving her.
==Biography==
===Con artist with morality===
During the reign of the Galactic Empire, the human male Haja Estree resided on the planet Daiyu, working as a con artist. In his scam, he posed as one of the Jedi, Force-sensitive peace-keepers who were hunted by the Empire after their Jedi Order was destroyed in 19 BBY,Star Wars: Timelines even though he knew it was dangerous. Helping those in need in return for a sum of credits, his performance as a Jedi included using remotes to close the shutters of his building and magnets to summon his comlink to create an illusion of using the Force. The con man also employed the help of the boy Jayco as well as a contact at a spaceport on Daiyu, whom he could pretend to use a Jedi mind trick on over his comlink and "convince" him to give individuals safe passage through the port.
In the meantime, Estree maintained ties with an anti-Imperial network known as "the Path." The Path used a series of safehouses to smuggle real Force-sensitives, who were thus fugitives of the Empire, to the Outer Rim TerritoriesStar Wars: The Force Awakens Beginner Game planetStar Wars: Dawn of Rebellion: The Visual Guide of Jabiim to receive new identities to go into hiding. He notably had contact with Captain Tala Durith, an undercover Imperial officer on the Mid Rim mining planet Mapuzo who had become disillusioned with the Empire and chose to help with the network.
===Meeting Kenobi===
In 9 BBY, Estree helped the Force-sensitive child Corran and his mother, Nyche,Star Wars Encyclopedia: The Comprehensive Guide to the Star Wars Galaxy flee Daiyu, pretending to use the Force to trick his contact into letting the pair through to a transport to the planet Corellia at Gate 3-C. Corran's mother complimented Estree's apparent Force abilities and paid him all of her credits for his services. Estree then urged Corran and his mother away to their transport before informing his contact that he would take a quick break once the pair had left.
Unbeknownst to Estree, Jedi Master-in-hiding Obi-Wan Kenobi had been led to his lair by Jayco and was watching the encounter from the edge of the room. Kenobi asked Estree to locate the Alderaanian Princess Leia Organa, who had been kidnapped by the Black Mask mercenary gang, and Estree asked for a sum of 800 crdits for the job. After Kenobi revealed the con artist's magnetic devices, Estree was forced to help the Jedi, pointing him in the direction of a spice den was located. Using Estree's information, the Jedi infiltrated the spice den and extracted Organa. However, the Third Sister, a member of the Empire's Jedi-hunting organization of the Inquisitorius, had also arrived to hunt Kenobi and chose to send out a bounty on the Jedi across Daiyu's city to help find her target.
===Making amends===
Estree then tried to help get Kenobi to the anti-Imperial network on Mapuzo. The con artist caught up with the Jedi Master and Organa at an alleyway near the spaceport, gunning down the bounty hunter droid 1-JAC before it could attack the pair. Kenobi believed Estree was coming for his bounty, but the con man instead gave him instructions to go to an automated cargo port and use a tracking fob to take the TR-286 transport eight to Mapuzo.
Shortly afterward, Estree cornered the Third Sister in an alley, continuing his act as a Jedi. The Inquisitor quickly figured out he was not one but still knew where Kenobi was. She probed his mind with the Force and found where he had sent Kenobi, leaving Estree in the alley to pursue her target.
===Escape from Jabiim===
Following his encounter with the Third Sister, Estree became wanted by the Empire and arrived on Jabiim. When Kenobi arrived with Kawlan Roken—a leader of the Path—from rescuing Organa from the Inquisitors' fortress, Kenobi greeted Estree, who joked that the Path headquarters was a good business place. After the Imperial I-class Star Destroyer Devastator—the flagship of Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Vader—arrived over Jabiim, Estree worked with the other refugees locking down all the entrances of the facility. At Kenobi's request, Estree kept an eye on Organa while she delved into the vents trying to open the main hangar door.
While Estree watched Organa, the Third Sister and her forces attacked the facility in hopes of capturing Kenobi, which resulted in a number of deaths on both sides. Tala Durith used her blaster to close off one of the blast doors to the main hangar before she sacrificed herself. After the attack halted, Kenobi agreed to surrender to the Third Sister and Vader. Before he left to fight Vader, the Jedi handed Estree his lightsaber, blaster, and imagecaster. After Organa opened up the hangar bay doors, Estree dropped Kenobi's imagecaster while running to the transport. A decoy transport took off from the base, which Darth Vader pulled down with the Force before the true transport made its escape. Following the escape, the Third Sister found Kenobi's imagecaster that Estree had dropped.
Fleeing Jabiim, the transport possessed a faulty hyperdrive and was pursued by the Devastator. As a result, Kenobi decided he would part ways with the refugees as it would give Roken time to fix the ship and escape, much to Organa's anger. Estree advised Kenobi to give Organa some space and promised he would get Organa to her home planet of Alderaan as soon as Kenobi was clear. Estree also spoke to Organa, consoling her before Kenobi returned to speak to her and say his farewells. Kenobi and Organa later regrouped on Alderaan.
==Personality and traits==
As a criminal and conman, Estree's motivation for his scam was to attain more credits. He enlisted the help of Jayco, who found potential clients and led them to his lair, using magnets and remotes to sell his fake Jedi scam. Though Estree cared about making his operations profitable, he also assured that the people he scammed would find safety among the Path. Estree carried a fake lightsaber that he created at his hip on the outside of his robes, whereas most Jedi concealed their lightsabers underneath their robes. He later decided to help Kenobi escape, saying that he wanted to make amends, and faced the Third Sister to give him and Organa more time to flee.
Despite his criminal activities and lies, Estree's goals were not malicious. He genuinely wanted to help Kenobi and gained a newfound respect for real Jedi after meeting the man. He was also devoted to the Path, keeping in touch with Tala Durith on Jabiim, although he indicated that the Path's headquarters was a good location to conduct his scam. Estree later assisted The Path in escaping from Jabiim, finally earning Kenobi's trust. Estree had black hair, brown eyes, and light-colored skin.
==Skills and abilities==
Estree was regarded as master of illusion, and owned a blaster pistol with which he was capable. Although his scam was centered around him being a Jedi, Estree was not Force-sensitive.
==Equipment==
Estree used a modified remote door opener to close the shutters of the building to make it look like he was using the Force, as well as magnets to summon his comlink. He also carried a fake lightsaber on his hip, and owned a blaster pistol. The con artist wore brown trousers with an off-white undershirt covered by a dark green tunic and a brown, carbon-cotton belt.
==Behind the scenes==
Portrayed by Kumail Nanjiani, whose stunt double was Brennan Mejia, Haja Estree first appeared in "Part II" of the live-action Disney+ series Obi-Wan Kenobi, which aired on May 26, 2022. The character was teased beforehand as well, first being mentioned in an interview with Nanjiani and later being shown in the teaser trailer for the series, which was released on March 9, 2022. Writer Joby Harold felt that having a fake Jedi would be a fun thing to add to Star Wars, leading to the creation of the con artist Haja Estree. Estree was shown pretending to use the Force to close the shutters in the second episode to make it clear that he's a fraud. Harold wanted that scene because director J.J. Abrams told him it should be a massive moment when Jedi use the Force, and it must be earned. Nanjiani landed the role after director Deborah Chow pitched the project to him and he agreed.
To prepare for his role, Nanjiani re-watched all the Star Wars films, as well as looked up different techniques that con-men used to scam their marks. The actor believed it was very fun to portray a con-man in the context of Star Wars, as well as playing a fake Jedi in general.Obi-Wan Kenobi: A Jedi's Return Nanjiani did much research on con men and magicians to learn how to play a character like Estree. The actor considered working on a Star Wars project a "dream come true." The actor described the character as a "street-level con-man guy who then gets embroiled in stuff that's way too big for him," who used a lot of gadgets to fool others., "Part VI" Nanjiani elaborated that Estree had a complicated morality, with a "pull and push inside of him," choosing between doing the right thing and making money, which made the choice he eventually makes much richer.
In production, the show's propmaster Brad Elliott and other production staff decided that Estree's lightsaber should look rudimentary and only passable as one of the weapons from a distance, reflecting that he was not a true Jedi. He tasked several prop makers with making a lightsaber for Estree with a budget of fifty dollars and a day and a half of time, instructing them to use materials from a hardware store and intentionally make it "bad." However, Elliott felt that each of the lightsabers produced turned out "too good" due to the talent of his team. Eventually, the lightsabers from the propmakers were presented to Chow and designer Doug Chiang, alongside one prop lightsaber Elliott had made for his Halloween out of hardware store materials when he was in his twenties. Though Elliott considered his costume lightsaber not to be good quality, Chiang and Chow picked it for Estree to use in the show. The propmaster was shocked but nonetheless thrilled that a piece of his past had become canon, having only originally intended it for use at a costume party.
==Appearances==
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*Obi-Wan Kenobi 2
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*Obi-Wan Kenobi 3 
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*Obi-Wan Kenobi 5
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*Obi-Wan Kenobi 6
==Sources==
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*Star Wars: Timelines
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*Star Wars: Dawn of Rebellion: The Visual Guide
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*Star Wars Encyclopedia: The Comprehensive Guide to the Star Wars Galaxy
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==Notes and references==
==External links==
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Category:Con artists
Category:Hidden Path members
Category:Humans
Category:Individuals with he/him pronouns
Category:Jedi impostors
Category:Males