If you had the feeling that the new Star Wars trilogy had no clue about many characters’ arcs until the very end, then you might have been right since the beginning. Confirmation about this feeling — shared by many — came from actress Daisy Ridley, who played Rey in the new trilogy. In a recent interview during the Jimmy Kimmel Live show, the actress revealed that Lucasfilm “toyed” with the idea of Rey descending from Obi-Wan Kenobi.
“At the beginning, they were toying with an Obi-Wan connection,” she said. “There were different versions, and at one point, she was no one. It came to Episode IX, and J.J. [Abrams] pitched me the film, and they were like, ‘Oh yeah, Palpatine’s grandaddy’ and I was like ‘Awesome,’ and then two weeks later he was like, ‘Oh we’re not sure…’ So it kept changing. So even as we were filming, I wasn’t sure what the answer was going to be.”
You can watch the full interview in the player below.
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Eventually, the writers decided to make her the granddaughter of a resurrected Emperor Palpatine. And speaking of him, guest host Josh Gad went on to ask Ridley the name of her grandmother, Palpatine’s (presumed) wife.
“You tell me, Josh,” answered Ridley, implying that fans will have to fill in some mysteries about Rey’s past with their imaginations — like the names of her parents.
Eventually, Gad asked if she would like to reprise her Star Wars character in the future. Even though she didn’t say no, she added that according to her, The Rise of Skywalker was “tied off with a bow.”
Are you surprised to discover that Rey’s mystery wasn’t planned since the beginning? Would you have liked to see a connection between Rey and Obi-Wan? Let us know in the comments section below.
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