3 "What If's" About 'The Rise Of Skywalker' Footage
Fans are exploding all over the internet with new Star Wars theories! Upon being aired at the D23 Expo this weekend, the talk of Rey turning to the darkside has been most prominent in Star Wars conversations.
The new trailer features images of the Resistance Fleet, Star Destroyers, a water battle, and REY HOLDING A DOUBLE BLADED RED LIGHTSABER.
Despite all the epic-ness shown in the trailer, Star Wars geeks (including me) around the globe cannot stop talking about Rey’s trip to the Dark Side.
In an attempt to make sense of that last image from the trailer, allow me to draw some “red conspiracy yarn,” and give my two cents on what I think is really (not really) happening.
What lies below spans from “the probable” to the “that’s a stretch.”
1) WHAT IF “Dark Side Rey” Is Just A Vision
This is the most popular plot theory I have seen from Star Wars enthusiasts across the web. Somewhere in the film, Rey could find herself in a Dark Side Cave. It would be in this cave that she would have to face herself as a Sith.
As many fans already know, Luke had a similar encounter in the Dark Side Cave on Dagobah while training with Master Yoda. In the cave, Luke fought Darth Vader and ultimately beheaded him. When he looked upon Vader’s fallen helmet, he found himself inside.
It’s reasonable to believe that if Rey were to ever find herself in a similar situation, she would probably face a Dark Side version of herself.
Many trailers for blockbuster movies have misleading imagery. Marvel is most notorious for this, but JJ Abrams did it with the 'The Force Awakens' trailer. Upon release of that trailer, many believed that Finn would be the next Jedi.
We now know that Rey is the only new protagonist to be force sensitive (or is she?), and Finn has taken on a more “war hero” type of character.
It would not be very surprising to see Rey stay true to the light side of the force; but nonetheless, it still makes for a jaw-dropping moment in the trailer. We get to see Rey in a different light, and that “Sith Army Knife” saber is awesome all by itself.
Possibility Rating: 8/10
2) WHAT IF Rey Was Being Manipulated From The Start
In the first two films of the sequel trilogy, Rey’s backstory has been shrouded in extreme mystery. Fans don’t know where she’s from, no other characters know where she’s from, even Rey herself doesn't know where she is from.
We have been left with a few clues: She was stranded on Jakku as a child, and she is strong with the force. In 'The Last Jedi' Rey’s time as Luke’s pupil left fans with even more questions about her origin.
Audiences are led to the idea of Rey’s parents not being essential to the plot. Apparently, they were junk traders who sold Rey off for drinking money. BUT *red yarn* what if her parents were having a child, with the purpose of giving her away.
WHAT IF Rey was born from parents who had ties with Palpatine and the Dark Side. This could be supported by the idea that the “dark side” of Ahch-To called out to Rey during her first lesson with Luke.
Maybe Rey was born with the intention of joining Palpatine in some way, and this is why her origin has been hidden. She is strong with the force, yet she does not have any attachments to other force sensitive characters in the movies. It must be said that force users don’t need to be from force using families, but it would be strange to see the the trilogy end with Rey not having an important origin story.
Rey’s trip to the dark side could be influenced by her past that we know nothing about.
Possibility Rating: 4.5/10
3) WHAT IF Rey Is Seduced To The Dark Side
If the imagery were to be true and not a form of misdirection, this would ultimately mean Rey has found her way over to the Dark Side. With the title being “Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker,” and with Ben Solo being the only one left with Skywalker blood (excluding Leia), many believe that the ninth installment will see the redemption of Kylo Ren.
Ever since speculation of the eighth episode started, people have believed that it would be possible for Rey and Kylo to switch sides. If Kylo were to redeem himself, this would support the title of the movie.
WHAT IF Rey is the “Anakin” of this story. If the story was told right, audiences could see Rey truly turn to the ways of the Sith. If Palpatine converts Rey in a similar way he did Anakin, I believe that we could see Rey as the next Star Wars villain.
*Red Yarn*
“But they said the next trilogy would be a totally different story”
“Daisey Ridley said Rey isn’t going to be in the next story”
In an interview with BuzzFeed’s AM to DM, Daisey Ridley DID say Rey would not be in the next Star Wars story. She said that REY would not be in the next story.
I’ll leave you with this theory of mine to chew on.
At the end of Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker; Ben Solo ends the conflict within himself and chooses the light, while Rey is seduced by Palpatine and the Dark Side. The fight between the two shown in the trailer is Ben trying to stop Rey from becoming what Palpatine wants her to be. Ben surrenders his lightsaber, and his cracked kyber crystal is placed into Rey’s new dual bladed light saber (hence the unstableness of the blade)
Rey then converts to the dark side, and she takes on the name of a Sith lord (i.e. Darth “blank”). The new trilogy would focus on a group of redeemed force users (The Knights Of Ren are confirmed for EP.9) with their redeemed master (Ben Solo) on a quest to take down Rey. This would usher in the ending of the current trilogy.
This film would close the arc on the Resistance and the First Order; and the next trilogy would focus on the war between the Sith and The Knights Of Ren.
Possibility Rating: “Probably Not”/10
Audiences are certainly going to be shocked at whatever happens with the Star Wars saga next. As Luke Skywalker said in Episode 8, “This is not going to go the way you think.”