It is never too early to start speculating on what's next for the Star Wars franchise, whether it's rumors about the endgame of the new trilogy or the Han Solo spin-off that just began filming. And, while rumors have been swirling about Star Wars: The Last Jedi ever since the first showing of The Force Awakens, now that the release date for the sequel is actually approaching, some of those rumors are getting serious — and there are plenty of plausible Star Wars: The Last Jedi theories that could be proven true when the movie premieres.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi is incredibly secretive. The plot has been kept entirely under wraps. All we know for sure is that Rey will return as the protagonist, a young woman who, when we last saw her, returned Luke Skywalker's lightsaber to the Jedi himself while Poe and Finn recovered at the Resistance base. Recently, actor Josh Gad went viral with his attempts at getting Daisy Ridley (Rey) to spill some secrets about the upcoming Star Wars film. No matter what he said or what celebrities he recruited to help him, Ridley remained a vault. Even JJ Abrams, The Force Awakens director, couldn't get her to reveal any The Last Jedi secrets. Lucky for us, we don't need Ridley to break to examine these Last Jedi theories.
1. Supreme Leader Snoke Is The Last Jedi
One fan theory proposes that the last Jedi referenced in the film's title isn't Luke Skywalker, or even Rey, it's Supreme Leader Snoke. According to the theory proposed by AnakinKardashian on Reddit, the mysterious big bad (and I do mean big) could be, essentially, an original Jedi. The theory states that the reason Rogue One spent so much time focusing on the ancient city of Jedha and the existence of Jedi temples is to establish the history of the Jedi before revealing that Snoke is actually an ancient member of the order. "What if what we know as Jedi are not really Jedi after all? What if Snoke is the last Jedi, in its original form?" wrote AnakinKardashian on Reddit, via The Huffington Post.
The idea that Snoke could be one of the last Jedi remaining of the ancient order also meshes with a speech Obi-Wan Kenobi gives Luke in the Star Wars book Heir to the Empire. According to WhatCulture, in the book, Luke thinks he's the last Jedi in the Galaxy, but he hears Obi-Wan's voice that tells him, "Not the last of the old Jedi, Luke. The first of the new."
Of course, this theory doesn't take into account the fact that The Last Jedi is actually plural. Official Spanish and French titles of the film confirm that it is plural, meaning that there are many last Jedi, not just one. Besides, if Snoke is one of these "Last Jedi" then that would mean that those he trained might be as well, so Kylo Ren could fit into that category.
2. Rey Is Related To Obi-Wan Kenobi
The most popular theory about The Last Jedi after The Force Awakens was released is that Rey is Luke Skywalker's daughter, but a close second is that Rey is really descendent of Obi-Wan Kenobi. The specifics are muddy, at best, as to how or why Obi-Wan would have children or possible familial ties to Rey at all, but there is some TFA-based evidence to back it up. For one thing, Rey's Force-sensitive, lightsaber-wielding skills had to come from somewhere. Then there's the idea that Rey being Luke's daughter would be too easy, and a relation to Obi-Wan might explain why she heard Obi-Wan's voice when she first touched Luke's lightsaber.
3. Rey's Father Is Ezra Bridger
This theory on Rey's parentage has two parts: 1) that Benicio Del Toro is playing Ezra Bridger, a character from the animated Star Wars Rebels series, and 2) Ezra Bridger is Rey's father. The theory, proposed by Darth Hodor on Reddit, as reported by /Film, maintains that Ezra, a young Jedi Padawan in Rebels, survives the war and falls to the dark side, joins forces with Snoke and starts interfering with Luke's Jedi Academy. All of this prompts Luke to kidnap Rey and hide her on Jakku for her own safety, to keep her from her father.
I'm not sure about the details of this theory; it could just as easily be that Ezra never went to the Dark Side and ended up leaving Rey on Jakku for equally good reasons. However, given that we know nothing about who Del Toro will be playing in The Last Jedi, the idea that he might be a character Star Wars fans already know, like Ezra from Rebels, is pretty fun. It would be a great nod to fans of the show, while also keeping Rey's parentage in the Jedi family without having to make her a Skywalker.
4. Kylo Ren Is Good
The whole Kylo Ren is a double agent theory has been making the rounds since The Force Awakens. It's definitely one of the more hopeful theories surrounding his character, but it does make a certain amount of sense. The idea is that Kylo Ren has been working his way up the ranks of the Dark Side to destroy the Sith from the inside. Killing Han was just a painful and horrible way for Kylo Ren to prove his allegiance to Snoke so he could get close enough to destroy him. Of course, it's almost just as likely that Kylo Ren is just plain evil, but his hair is just too good for a bad guy.
5. Anakin Returns
Hayden Christensen's Anakin Skywalker is a controversial figure in Star Wars history, but it's quite possible fans could see him again in The Last Jedi. Writer Chris Hartwell recently released his theory that Anakin would return to the franchise as a Force ghost, perhaps to send a message to Kylo Ren about his decision to abandon the Dark Side before he died. It would be interesting to see Kylo Ren, a character who talks to Darth Vader's mangled helmet, interact with his grandfather in some way, and this might just be how to do it. Plus, it would give Christensen a chance to redeem his character for those who hate the prequels.
We'll see which theories come true when Star Wars: The Last Jedi is released in theaters on Dec. 15.
