10 Star Wars: The Force Awakens Characters That We Can’t Wait To See In Action

Star Wars: The Force Awakens is getting closer and closer, and despite the movie's breathtaking trailers (one of which can be seen above) and some very revealing magazine features courtesy of Empire, much of the J.J. Abrams helmed release remains a complete mystery. Following the disappointing prequels, the pressure is on Disney to really deliver with this new trilogy, especially as upcoming spinoffs like Rogue One and the Han Solo origin story have made it clear that Star Wars is actually going to become a yearly fixture in cinemas moving forward. With so much of Star Wars: The Force Awakens being kept a closely guarded secret, we only really know the basics about both the old and new characters. That only serves to further heighten the excitement surrounding the movie, but Abrams' secrecy has backfired on him to at least some extent with everything from concept art to quite possibly the entire plot leaking online at one point or another over past couple of years. Even with all of that though, there's still a lot we simply don't know about those who now inhabits a Galaxy Far, Far Away 40 years after the events of Return of the Jedi. So, with that in mind, which of these mysterious characters are we most excited to see when Star Wars: The Force Awakens is released next month? Like the previous Star Wars movies, the cast list for this one is huge, so narrowing it down to just ten definitely wasn't easy. From the mysterious villains to the young trio who look set to become the new faces of the franchise (not to mention some returning fan-favourites), these are the ten characters we can't wait to learn more about on December 18th. 10) General Hux As of right now, the hierarchy of The First Order in Star Wars: The Force Awakens is a complete mystery. However, General Hux clearly has a high ranking position, and based on what little we know about him, he looks set to be one of the most hateful new additions to the Star Wars franchise. Domnhall Gleeson recently revealed that Hux is "kind of opposite Kylo Ren," adding: They have their own relationship, which is individual and unusual. One of them is strong in different ways than the other. They’re both vying for power." It sounds like there could be some tension there, and seeing how that plays out is definitely a reason to be excited about the character's role here. 9) Maz Kanata Lupita Nyong'o's motion capture character has been one of the most intriguing parts of Star Wars: The Force Awakens for a while now, but it was the recent TV spot which really increased our interest in Maz Kanata. J.J. Abrams has confirmed that Maz (described as "pirate" who is thousands of years old) is the alien on the poster for the movie, and also revealed that her eyes do indeed have some sort of powers. That and how those relate to Rey is obviously a very good reason to be intrigued by what the character is going to bring to the movie, and with many fans convinced that Maz is going to take on a Yoda like role in The Force Awakens, she's definitely someone to keep an eye on. 8) Captain Phasma The presence of a female villain in Star Wars: The Force Awakens has got a lot of fans very excited, and it's not hard to see why. With Game of Thrones star Gwendoline Christie inside that very unique Stormtrooper armour, Captain Phasma looks set to be one of the most exciting recent additions to Star Wars canon thanks to this movie. Worryingly, Entertainment Weekly recently indicated that Captain Phasma doesn't have a huge role in the movie, so it could be that she doesn't end up really factoring into things in a major way until Star Wars Episode VIII. Regardless, seeing her hunting down the rogue Finn here has a lot of potential for some very interesting moments.. 7) BB-8 Star Wars: The Force Awakens is still roughly a month away from being released, but BB-8 is already a fan-favourite character and has been since that first teaser trailer. It's not exactly hard to see why, either; a unique creation, this attention grabbing droid might just usurp R2-D2 as not just the franchise's comic relief, but also its heart. We still don't know how Rey ends up meeting BB-8, so that's a mystery that's going to be interesting to see addressed, as is whether or not she (that's the rumour anyway) manages to live up to the very high expectations from fans. Here's hoping this droid doesn't end up being this trilogy's Jar Jar Binks, eh? That would obviously be a crushing disappointment. 6) Poe Dameron As big a mystery as Poe Dameron is at this stage, there's something about everything we've seen from the movie which definitely points to one thing being certain: he's really freaking cool. The mystery of Poe's background was actually touched on in a recent Marvel comic book which revealed that his parents fought alongside Han Solo and the gang during the Battle of Endor. However, while his past may have been addressed, what's to come for this X-Wing pilot - who wants to bet that he ends up piloting the Millennium Falcon? - is what really has us intrigued at this stage. At the very least, he'll no doubt steal the show when it comes to the movie's dogfights. 5) Supreme Leader Snoke Is Supreme Leader Snoke going to end up being the new big bad of the Star Wars franchise following the death of The Emperor? There are countless unanswered questions about who or what he is, with Andy Serkis recently revealing that the motion capture creation could have never been brought to life in live-action due to him being so monstrous and huge. With a title like "Supreme Leader" though, it's obvious that he'll be in control of The First Order and quite possibly the one who's in charge of The Knights of Ren. Does that mean he's a Sith, or something else? Serkis has said he's not a resurrected Palpatine, so there's at least one popular theory debunked, but for the most part, we're still completely in the dark in regards to this character. 4) Finn We know that Finn goes on the run from The First Order after rescuing Poe Dameron, but why does the former Stormtrooper decide to help that member of the Resistance, and what leads to him teaming up with Rey to track down the man he was brought up to believe was the evil destroyer of The Empire? Those are obviously some pretty big questions, but they still pale in comparison to others. With J.J. Abrams confirming that Finn's surname has been kept a secret for good reason and a shot of him in the trailers using Luke Skywalker's old lightsaber to fend off Kylo Ren, it remains to be seen whether he's the new Jedi of the Star Wars franchise, of if that's all just some clever misdirection. 3) Rey Why is Finn wielding the lightsaber possible misdirection? Well, the popular fan theory is that Rey is the one who masters the Force under the tutelage of Luke Skywalker, though the rumour mongers are unable to decide whether she's the real Skywalker, or he is. With Rey's surname also a mystery, her identity being revealed is another compelling reason to watch Star Wars: The Force Awakens, but even more exciting than that is the fact that the franchise has a female lead. Princess Leia was great, but too often a damsel in distress, so the Star Wars series having a strong female role model for younger moviegoers to look up to is a huge positive here. 2) Kylo Ren Kylo Ren has been a compelling character for a while now, but the latest trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens - which saw the villain pledging to finish Darth Vader's mission for him while talking to his charred helmet - has upped that in a major way. With fan speculation running rampant (is he Vader's grandson and do The Knights of Ren have anything to do with the Sith Inquisitors from Star Wars Rebels?), the anticipation surrounding Kylo Ren's big screen debut is at an all-time high. Between that vicious looking crossguard lightsaber and the fact that it's Adam Driver beneath the mask, Kylo looks set to be a fantastic new villain to base this Star Wars trilogy around. 1) Luke Skywalker We may not know a whole lot about where we pick up with Han Solo, Chewbacca and Princess General Leia in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, but we do at least have a general idea of what the movie has in store for them. Luke Skywalker, on the other hand is a total mystery, a deliberate move by J.J. Abrams and company to keep some real mystery around this highly anticipated release. With so many rumours out there (ranging from Luke trying and failing to create a new Jedi Order to a turn to the Dark Side), it's hard to say what's in store for this beloved icon, but finding out is obviously one of the most compelling reasons to see the movie the second it's released.