It must have been a seriously weird day on Tatooine when Shmi Skywalker was knocked up by the Force, but who could have predicted that her child and grandchildren would go onto alter the very face of the galaxy? Everything in the central Star Wars movies, from the eradication of the Jedi, the dominance of the Galactic Empire, the destruction of the Death Star, the eventual toppling of the Empire and right through to the First Order/Resistance conflict at the heart of the Sequel Trilogy revolves around the Skywalker family. And, this December, we’ll get to see the final installment in this decades-spanning familial saga with Star Wars: Episode IX.
Episode IX finally ending their story has been accepted by the fanbase for a long time now, but Oscar Isaac recently confirmed it in an interview with IndieWire, saying the following:
“It is the end of the entire Skywalker saga… Nine stories. This is the culmination of the entire thing. What J.J. has done, and the entire Lucasfilm team is incredibly fulfilling. It’s also special for us because you get to learn a lot more things about these characters.”
So, who’s left of the Skywalkers at the end of all things? Perhaps the most prominent is Kylo Ren/Ben Solo. The son of Leia and Han, he’s the most complex character in the Sequel Trilogy by a mile (and also probably the best performed, too). I’d expect the denouement of the film to revolve around Rey’s continuing efforts to bring him back to the light and redeem him for killing Han in The Force Awakens.
We also know that Episode IX will feature General Leia, despite Carrie Fisher having died in early 2017. I’d imagine her role will be minimized though so as not to draw too much attention to the cinematic necromancy required to bring her back to the screen.
We’ll also get to see Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker in some capacity – most likely as a Force Ghost. And then there are the vague and unsubstantiated rumors that Anakin will return in some capacity. Whatever happens though, I can’t wait to see how this saga concludes. I’m also looking forward to future Star Wars films that don’t have to revolve around Skywalkers. That is, unless Kylo Ren and Rey get busy and pop out a grandchild for Leia.
