The D23 Expo is officially over, but Disney and Lucasfilm decided to keep the momentum going into the new week. Early this morning, they released a special look at Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. And it definitely holds some big surprises. While everyone has been talking about Rey’s potential turn to the dark side, and her new double-bladed red lightsaber, we also get a look at C-3PO possibly turning to the dark side. Is he possessed by the ghost of Emperor Palpatine?
We’re not quite sure what is going on yet. The Rise of Skywalker is still shrouded in a lot of mystery. During the big D23 Expo, the stars of this final Skywalker saga sequel were on hand, and John Boyega teased that Finn may be directly related to Rey’s transformation, which has some speculating that this may be the most elaborate disguise any hero has ever pulled off to infiltrate the Empire, with Rey pretending to be a Sith to get on the other side of the fight, a play on what Han Solo and Luke Skywalker did as Stormtroopers in the very first Star Wars, A New Hope, from 1977.
Luke Skywalker can be heard narrating the first part of the D23 Rise of Skywalker Special Look. It certainly sounds like he is giving Rey the ultimate pep talk, but he could be communicating with the entire Resistance as he returns in Force Ghost form. The trailer’s tagline is ‘The Story of a Generation comes to an End’.
“We’ve passed on all we know. A thousand generations live in you now. But this is your fight.”
Luke Skywalker soon finds himself replaced by Emperor Palpatine. The Sith master has returned from beyond the grave. And it is unclear if he is speaking to Rey or Kylo Ren when he says this.
“Your journey…Nears its end.”
If you listen closely, you can hear Darth Vader’s iconic breathing, as Emperor Palpatine seems to be introducing the new Sith version of Rey, whose new lightsaber appears to be a cross between Darth Maul’s double-bladed lightsaber and Kylo Ren’s much more archaic lightsaber with a hilt. Did Rey build this new lightsaber using Ben Solo’s Kyber crystal? Or did he teach her how to build it, since he’s the only on we’ve seen with such a blade in this galaxy?
Related: Rise of Skywalker Poster Brings Emperor Palpatine Back from the Dead
Of the images, we get to see Rey united with Poe, Finn, Chewbacca and C-3PO as they look upon a village that appears to be celebrating. What? We don’t know. This could be from the end of the movie, but why would they show it to us first? We see Carrie Fisher’s final return as General Leia. The small Resistance Fleet comes out of hyper drive, apparently to face off against a squad of Star Destroyers in some truly breathtaking imagery.
While Rey’s turn to the Dark Side seems to be the talk of the trailer, we do see Rey on what is assumed to be Batuu, the new planet featured at Disney Parks’ Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. She throws her blue lightsaber through the forest, playing a game of boomerang. If we look carefully, we can see that she is practicing with a remote similar to the one Luke Skywalker trained with in A New Hope. Is she getting guidance from Yoda and Obi-Wan in this scene? We know they have both returned as Force Ghosts at this point in the canon. Here is the official synopsis Lucasfilm and Disney released for The Rise of Skywalker.
Lucasfilm and director J.J. Abrams join forces once again to take viewers on an epic journey to a galaxy far, far away with& Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the riveting conclusion of the seminal Skywalker saga, where new legends will be born and the final battle for freedom is yet to come.& Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker& opens in U.S. theaters on December 20.
The film stars Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Anthony Daniels, Naomi Ackie, Domhnall Gleeson, Richard E. Grant, Lupita Nyong’o, Keri Russell, Joonas Suotamo, Kelly Marie Tran, and Billy Dee Williams.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker& is directed by J.J. Abrams and produced by Kathleen Kennedy, Abrams and Michelle Rejwan. Callum Greene, Tommy Gormley and Jason McGatlin serve as executive producers.& Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker& was written by J.J. Abrams & Chris Terrio. The trailer arrives direct from Disney and Lucasfilm.
