EPISODE IX Speculation (includes SPOILERS from THE LAST JEDI)

[Buried Alien]

If you still haven't watched STAR WARS EPISODE VIII: THE LAST JEDI and don't want to be spoiled, it's best to click away now, because discussion for the next movie will refer to key lines and plot points from VIII.

In THE LAST JEDI, Kylo Ren exhorts Rey to let the past die...to kill it, if necessary.

What if Rey takes his advice to heart, both figuratively and literally?

The past of STAR WARS and the Force, the Jedi, lies with the Skywalker legacy. Anakin Skywalker is dead, and so is Luke. Leia lives, but for how much longer (and she's unlikely to procreate more Skywalker progeny before her time on the mortal plane ends)?

If Rey kills Kylo/Ben Solo in EPISODE IX, the Skywalker bloodline...the past...ends, and she will have killed it. Rey, whom Kylo Ren (if he is telling the truth) has plainly stated is not of the Skywalker bloodline.

Symbolically, the Skywalker lightsaber built by Anakin and wielded by himself during his time as a Jedi and later by Luke, was finally destroyed in THE LAST JEDI.

Rian Johnson has said that his eventual new trilogy, which will take place after EPISODE IX, will move STAR WARS beyond the mythos of the Skywalkers.

Based on this information, I believe Rey will kill Kylo Ren in EPISODE IX and end the legacy of the Skywalkers, starting a new chapter in the history of the Force and the Jedi.

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[The Whovian]

At some point, she will end up killing Kylo. There's no other way this story can end

[Buried Alien]

At some point, she will end up killing Kylo. There's no other way this story can end

Yes, and it would be a profoundly painful experience for Rey. She might not be related to the Skywalkers by blood, but she has long idolized them from afar and has almost come to see them as her adopted family. To end their bloodline for the future of the Galaxy and the Force might represent that difficult, but necessary sacrifice she must make.

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[Carabas]

Not even looking at themes and subtext, the main hero killing the main villain is always a good bet.

[Buried Alien]

Not even looking at themes and subtext, the main hero killing the main villain is always a good bet.

However, this is surprisingly rare in STAR WARS. Obi-Wan Kenobi never killed Darth Vader, nor did Luke Skywalker. Palpatine was finished off by Vader (well, yeah, Anakin, but still in his Vader form), not Luke. Snoke was done in by Kylo Ren, not Rey.

I don't know how realistic the expectation is, but I think at least some part of fandom is holding out that Rey will turn Kylo Ren back into Ben Solo in EPISODE IX.

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[BeastieRunner]

They both die.

[Soubhagya]

Episode 9 prediction thread. Never thought of myself being here. I used to be a SW fan due to the OT. But i was not really passionate about it. But three back to back films which i loved and especially after TLJ i am simply waiting for 2019. I had this kind of excitement a few times before. They also had a couple of good films followed by a film which i loved a lot when they came out, making me wait for the next one. Spider-man 3, Dark Knight Rises, Order of The Phoenix. And X-Men Days of Future Past. ( Which granted had only First Class. I did not love the first X-Men films. But First Class is actually my second favorite X-Men film after Logan).

One of the best things i liked about TLJ was how unpredictable it was. That first scene where Luke tosses away the light saber was jaw dropping. It caught me completely by surprise. The next one won't be that surprising. I hope it has some kind of surprises and not very predictable.

I think Rey would rebuild that light saber. The one belonging to Luke and to his father before him. She had the pieces. If she does nothing with that why show it? She happens to have a cool staff. I can see her using the two parts and making that staff a double ended light saber. It would be a callback to Darth Maul. That light saber battle is perhaps the only universally beloved part of that film. I can see them doing that.

If rumors are to be believed (unless someone confirms it for me. I thought it was by someone at Reddit which is not reliable) Episode 9 will be tying up all three trilogies. Its a good idea to to have call backs to the one good thing of Phantom Menace.

And can it be done? Can a broken light saber be repaired? Can it be divided into two and be made a double ended light saber as i am thinking?

[Grind]

The movie ends with the birth of Kylo’s twin children who in the next trilogy will defeat him.

[thwhtGuardian]

Redemption was a big thematic element at the end the original trilogy and since the first two films of the new trilogy have leaned so heavily on mirroring the original I think the third will as well with perhaps the slight twist that Rey is fully successful and Kylo won't die immediately after being redeemed.

[Carabas]

And can it be done? Can a broken light saber be repaired?

If the crystal is intact and you know what you're doing, sure. Although it'd probably be easier to just make a new one.

Can it be divided into two and be made a double ended light saber as i am thinking?

No. Two blades require two crystals. Ahsoka got the crystals for her two white lighsabers from the dual-bladed saber of an Inquisitor.

[ClanAskani]

Let's say Episode IX ends with the Resistance defeating the First Order. Rian Johnson's trilogy is set in the future. Who are the bad guys? There's another rise of the Empire? The Canto Bight scenes show Rian likes the theme of the underclass rising up against oppression (which doesn't really work all that well in TLJ since the First Order just took over a few days or weeks before TLJ and it was the Republic's fault for all the problems in Canto Bight, but that's not the impression the audience gets, but that's a different issue.)

Disney wants to keep churning out SW movies. They need the basic story elements to stay consistent so Disney can use those in marketing for their other properties - lightsabers and Stormtroopers. For example, watch tv spots for Disneyland/Disney World/Disney Cruises. They have Princesses for girls and Star Wars for boys (for example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOG5HXCj3ok). These are elements that the next sequel trilogy has to have. And it's going to get repetitive if every sequel trilogy has to establish how the Empire is coming back again. Or if Rian's trilogy has completely new villains and Jedi that look completely different than how can they use movies to market Disney Resorts? That's not why Disney spent 4 Billion dollars to solve their issue with boys not wanting to go to Disney World.

The way to avoid that - Episode IX doesn't end with the First Order defeated. They have to stay around as the villains for the next movies. The Resistance and Jedi are the freedom fighters who continue the good fight against oppression. The victory for the Resistance at the end of Episode IX is either Kylo dying or Kylo being redeemed and helping to stop some plot of the First Order.

I don't think having a bleak end to the Skywalker saga with the last living Skywalker descent the villain is going to make audiences any happier than cranky hermit Luke in TLJ. Personally, if that I happens then I'm going to post another 1 star review on Rotten Tomato and spend even more time online hating on that movie. And I think Lucasfilm understands that they can't destroy the Skywalker legacy because there's a lot of people like me and they're going to get another 49% RT audience score if they do.

My guess is there will be a time jump and in the several years between TLJ and Episode IX, Rey spends training with ghost Luke and as Leia's surrogate daughter. Rey adopts the surname Skywalker or Organa (since she doesn't have a last name). How much would people freak out if leaks from merchandise or toys for Episode IX have Rey Skywalker?

I also think Rey will have a lightsaber staff. Kylo has the Knights of Ren as a Emperor's Guard and other villains for Rey to have to duel. Easily those items give fan service while providing cool visuals and fight sequences.

Someone has to carry on the ways of the Jedi, so Rey has to survive and start a new Jedi order for the Jedi to be in the next trilogies.

[Carabas]

Disney wants to keep churning out SW movies. They need the basic story elements to stay consistent so Disney can use those in marketing for their other properties - lightsabers and Stormtroopers. For example, watch tv spots for Disneyland/Disney World/Disney Cruises. They have Princesses for girls and Star Wars for boys (for example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOG5HXCj3ok). These are elements that the next sequel trilogy has to have. And it's going to get repetitive if every sequel trilogy has to establish how the Empire is coming back again. Or if Rian's trilogy has completely new villains and Jedi that look completely different than how can they use movies to market Disney Resorts? That's not why Disney spent 4 Billion dollars to solve their issue with boys not wanting to go to Disney World.

They learned that from Lucas.

I don't think having a bleak end to the Skywalker saga with the last living Skywalker descent the villain is going to make audiences any happier than cranky hermit Luke in TLJ. Personally, if that I happens then I'm going to post another 1 star review on Rotten Tomato and spend even more time online hating on that movie. And I think Lucasfilm understands that they can't destroy the Skywalker legacy because there's a lot of people like me and they're going to get another 49% RT audience score if they do.

Audiences actually liked the movie. Rotten Tomatoes is a sham with non-existent security that gets way more attention than it should.

[ChrisIII]

Yeah, Star Wars has never really shied away from Stormtroopers and lightsabers as far as the films go, although the books and comics have at times, with some mixed results.

The "Knights of the Old Republic" also falls to the same tropes. One of the ships, the Hammerhead, looks so much like it belongs in the Original Trilogy era that it later was brought into it in "Rebels" and "Rogue One".

[Scott Taylor]

Personally I hope they gut it out and do end the Skywalker bloodline. Skywalkers are overrated anyhow. For all the talk about Anakin being the greatest, he was just another dude in the grand scheme of things. Bloodlines are overrated in general and an emphasis on them sends a bad meta-message, I think.

[ClanAskani]

Audiences actually liked the movie. Rotten Tomatoes is a sham with non-existent security that gets way more attention than it should.

Thousands of actual people posted negative reviews on RT and hate this movie with a fiery passion. If you want to use CinemaScore as proof audiences liked it, I can give you an essay on what's wrong with CinemaScore and why they tells studios what they want to hear. The CinemaScore is calculated based on a sampling of less than 1000 people (usually 400-500). Anyone who is really angry like me would have their review tossed out. comScore is more accurate and that was lower (90% gave it a positive rating) but that also is a very small sample size.

The fanbase is split, theaters aren't happy with their lack of profits from TLJ and Disney will need to spend more on marketing for Episode IX. If Lucasfilm doesn't deliver a film that doesn't appease the fanbase and earn a lot of money is going to make Disney execs very very unhappy.