Once Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker hits theaters in just five days from now, Anthony Daniels will officially be the only actor to appear in all nine episodes of the Skywalker Saga. Indeed, it’s been a long journey for old C-3PO, and if you ask Daniels himself, the time might even be right for the droid to go out in a blaze of glory.
In an interview last month with Empire, Daniels expressed some regret over Threepio’s role in The Last Jedi, arguing that the beloved droid became little more than “a table decoration” in the 2017 film. Speaking more recently to The Huffington Post, the actor expanded further on these thoughts, explaining that he at one point asked Rise of Skywalker helmsman J.J. Abrams to kill off his character, or at least give him a big, emotional ending:
“Before filming this, it seemed like the writers had slightly run out of steam with C-3PO. I didn’t want him to just become a wall decoration. I thought he should have a big send-off or send-off that gave you finality, and of course, at the time, J.J. said ‘no way.’”
Nonetheless, Daniels hinted that the director may have ultimately come around to the idea:
“But J.J. is notorious for changing his mind on a minute-by-minute basis. It makes working with him a vibrant experience.”
Naturally, Daniels stopped short of confirming whether or not his character actually does pass away, leaving the fans in a state of anxiety over Threepio’s fate.
At the very least, the various trailers and TV spots for Rise of Skywalker have suggested that the droid will be getting some unusually heavy moments in this month’s release. In particular, the scene of Daniels’ character taking “one last look” at his friends has hit a lot of viewers right where it hurts.
Of course, when the marketing is hinting this strongly at someone’s possible demise, you have to wonder if it’s all just a deliberate ploy to throw off the theorists. Either way, we only have to wait until Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker hits theaters on December 20th to find out.
