Spoilers ahead for Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Now that Episode 8, The Last Jedi, is out, Star Wars fans can begin speculating and theorizing about what's going to happen in the currently untitled Episode 9. Who wouldn't? The movie doesn't come out for another two years, but with JJ Abrams returning to direct, it's bound to be great, and full of action. As we all know, a ton of stuff happens in The Last Jedi — Luke Skywalker dies, Kylo Ren becomes the new Supreme Leader, Yoda appears, and there are a ton of revelations about other characters like Rey, Leia, and Poe Dameron. As such, there are so many theories about Star Wars: Episode 9 already.
So what can we expect from the 2019 movie?
Kylo Ren Will Run the First Order — Possibly To The Ground
First of all, there's going to be a new big bad in town. Since Kylo Ren killed off Supreme Leader Snoke in a fit of epic scheming, he's taken over as the new Supreme Leader and head of the First Order. And since Rey rejected Kylo's offer to join him in the dark side and rule the galaxy together, he's no doubt going to have it in for her and the rest of the rebellion. How differently Kylo Ren runs the First Order is going to be interesting. He may not have the discipline enough to handle the pressure, however, and his hubris might be his downfall.
Rey Will Use The Force More, With Some Big Help
On the light side, Rey will most certainly continue trying to tap into the Force. And she probably won't even have to do it without a teacher either. Even though Luke Skywalker is dead, it's pretty obvious that he's going to be able to come back as a Force ghost just like Yoda and Obi-Wan before him. Heck, maybe we'll even see Yoda, Obi-Wan, and Luke all return to teach her how to be a Jedi from their ghostly states of being.
We'll Learn Who Rey's Parents Are
Speaking of Rey, we're definitely going to have to get more of a definitive answer about who her parents are in Episode IX. Kylo Ren may have told her that they were nobodies, but we can't really rely on his version of the story, can we? Will it turn out that Leia is actually Rey's mother? Or will Luke be her father? Or perhaps she's related to Obi-Wan somehow? Either way, it would behoove fans not to take Kylo Ren's words at face value.
Leia Will Die
Back to Leia, considering that Carrie Fisher has sadly left us, we've got to expect that Leia may die either in Episode IX, or somehow off screen. Lucasfilm already released a statement saying that they wouldn't be using a CGI recreation of Leia, but that doesn't mean that there isn't unused footage that they can manipulate for Episode IX. Either way, get ready to say goodbye to Leia, because that's going to be a freaking sad one.
Poe Will Become The Rebel Leader
Which means that someone in the Rebel Alliance will have to take over as leader, and the best guess is probably Poe Dameron. Poe has a few stumbles in The Last Jedi. He makes a couple of poor choices and doubts his leaders. But he finally comes around, and starts making good decisions, and trusting in the people who know a lot more than he does. There's one scene towards the end of The Last Jedi when the rebels are trapped and Poe decides to lead the way to safety. Everyone turns to look at Leia, but she snaps back, "What are you looking at me for? Follow him!" Sounds like an endorsement to me.
New Jedi Will Be Discovered
And we're probably going to see some new Jedi in the mix, too. Luke mentioned that he had escaped Kylo Ren's destruction of the Jedi Temple along with "a handful of students," which means that there are other young Jedi out there. Plus, the closing scene of The Last Jedi suggested that more potential Jedi are all across the galaxy.
So Episode IX will mark a new era for Star Wars. With our beloved original trio gone, it's likely that Rey and Kylo Ren will face off as the Jedi/Sith epic saga to close out the series, while Poe, Finn, and Rose lead what's left of the rebels against General Hux. It's going to be one epic, final battle. That is, before the next set of movies come out.
