J.J. Abrams made the decision to kill off some pretty major characters inStar Wars 9. The director had the difficult task of bringing 40+ years-worth of storytelling to an end and the results are mixed, to put it lightly. to do so, Abrams and the movie’s co-writer Chris Terrio (Justice League), felt the need to kill some characters in an attempt to drive their point home. We’ve compiled a list of the major deaths, which you can see below. There areSPOILERSforThe Rise of Skywalkerbelow, so read ahead at your own risk.
9Leia Organa
Carrie Fisher passed away in late 2016, so we were really lucky to have her inThe Rise of Skywalkerat all. J.J. Abrams discovered that there was enough unused footage fromThe Force Awakensto carry on her story and finish it as intended, which unfortunately saw the Leia Organa officially die on the big screen. She appears to use all of her remaining strength in an effort to bring Ben Solo back from the Dark Side while he fights Rey on the Death Star wreckage. While it ultimately worked, one has to wonder if it was necessary in the end to include as much Leia as they did.
Boolio was a newcomer to theStar Warsfranchise and he didn’t last very long at all inThe Rise of Skywalker. We first learned about the alien character on Force Friday and he proved to be a great help to The Resistance when he let them know there was a mole within the First Order. Boolio’s severed head is later thrown on a table, which was kind of a heavy move for a Disney movie. Regardless, Boolio died a hero and basically started the new battle.
7General Hux
As for who that mole was that Boolio was speaking of, it was none other than General Hux of the First Order. He can be seen inThe Rise of Skywalkerhas he helps Poe, Finn, and Chewbacca escape. However, he has no interest in really helping The Resistance, he just wants to make sure that Kylo Ren doesn’t succeed. This proves to be his final act in the movie and the franchise as Allegiant General Pryde (Richard E. Grant) figures out what has been done and shoots the character in the chest.
6Allegiant General Pryde
Allegiant Pryde was also a newcomer to theStar Warsfranchise and was rather mysterious. Richard E. Grant delivered a worthy performance as the First and Final Order villain and it’s a shame thatThe Rise of Skywalkerwas the end of the line for him. With that being said, Pryde was struck down by Finn and Jannah’s hard work towards the end of the movie when they brought down the Star Destroyer over Exegol. We last see Pryde as he is blasted through a huge window in a ball of flames.
5Snap Wexley
Resistance pilot Snap Wexley was brought into the franchise for 2015’sThe Force Awakens. Wexley actor Greg Grunberg is a good friend of J.J. Abrams, but even that couldn’t stop the character from going down in a blaze of glory during the climactic final battle over Exegol. Wesley dies when the Final Order has the upper hand, early on in the battle when the odds are stacked against them. To make matters worse, it doesn’t look like Wexley’s X-Wing crash into a Star Destroyer did any damage to the enemy ship.
4The Knights of Ren
Like Snap Wexley, the mysteriousKnights of Renwere introduced inThe Force Awakens.Star Warsfans were hoping we’d get to see some more backstory on the characters this time around, or at least some more information about them, but that was not to be. After looking like a force to be reckoned with, Ben Solo takes them all down with relative ease and kills them all before attempting to go help Rey take down Emperor Palpatine. For fans hoping for more information on the Knights of Ren, you’re going to have to dive into Star Wars: The Rise of Kylo Ren #1.
3Emperor Palpatine (Again?)
Star Warsfans were shocked to learn that Emperor Palpatine was going to be back inThe Rise of Skywalker. We all assumed, as did George Lucas, that the villain died in 1983’sReturn of the Jedi. However, we were all wrong, according to J.J. Abrams, thoughhe doesn’t care to explain how Emperor Palpatine is back after all of this time. Regardless, Palpatine asks Rey, who is his granddaughter, to kill him, but she declines. She ultimately ends up killing him anyway with two Lightsabers instead of one. Is he really dead this time? Only time will tell: insert Ian McDiarmid laugh here with a hint of Abrams mystery box.
2Rey (Sort Of)
Before Rey can kill Emperor Palpatine after he has achieved full power, he throws Ben Solo down a pit (wink). Rey uses all of the strength that she has to go back at Palpatine, which ends up killing the villain and herself at the same time.The Rise of Skywalker doesn’t make sensein so many ways, and it’s unclear why Rey did not disappear like the other Jedi do when the pass on, but she sticks around. Thankfully, Ben Solo comes up to save the day, trading his life for hers with a kiss. Rey comes back to life, but at a huge cost.
Everybody assumed Ben Solo died when Emperor Palpatine threw him down the pit on Exegol. But that was not to be the case. After seemingly learning about thehealing powers of The Forceon the Death Star wreckage from Rey, he decides to do the same after her battle with Palpatine killed her off.Star Warsfans hoping for “Reylo” to come alive on the big screen were rewarded for a few seconds as Ben Solo embraces Rey and then dies in her arms. The rumors of redemption were true and Ben Solo dies as a hero.
