Star Wars 8: Who is The Last Jedi? A look at the new title's possible meaning

Luke? Rey? Kylo Ren? How will the Jedi meet their demise? 

Jack Shepherd
Monday 23 January 2017 17:57 GMT
Comments

Having given Rogue One enough time to make its own mark on the world, Disney has finally unveiled the title for the eighth main-saga episode: Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

Of course, fans are incredibly excited to finally have some official information regarding The Force Awakens sequel.

So, without further ado, although we only have three words to go on, let’s discuss the sh*t out of what exactly The Last Jedi could mean for episode eight.

The most obvious contender to be The Last Jedi is Luke. The Force-wielder is the only known Jedi Knight to currently be alive - with Rey having just reached him on the mysterious planet of Ahch-To to embark on Jedi training. Is the title just that: a reference to Luke?

There's another issue: what about Rey? As pointed out numerous times, The Last Jedi could refer to plural Jedi, meaning Rey and Luke together could be the last Jedi.

Then there's the word 'Last' to think about. The definite end of the Jedi implies one of a few things. Firstly, that Luke dies before having completely training Rey, making him the final Jedi and her merely a Force-sensitive person.

Second, both of them could die, which seems highly unlikely. However, rather than dying, perhaps Rey could turn to the Dark side, becoming a Sith apprentice. There are popular theories that she could be the new embodiment of Darth Vader - if she became evil, that would surely ‘end’ the Jedi if Luke were to perish somehow.

Then, there’s the idea The Last Jedi could refer to the battle between the Knights of Ren and the numerous Jedi knight Luke trained before disappearing. Could we finally see their story on screen in a flashback?

Perhaps Luke will declare himself 'The Last Jedi' and will not train Rey. Having seen the Jedi he trained die by Kylo Ren's hands, would he perhaps decide to train no-one else? Interestingly, Yoda's last words are "When gone am I, the last of the Jedi will you be" followed by "Pass on what you have learned, Luke." Perhaps he will pass everything on but decide there shall be no ore Jedi.

Apple TV+ logo

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days

New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled

Try for free
Apple TV+ logo

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days

New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled

Try for free

As we know there are non-Jedi Force-sensitive beings in the universe - Princess Leia, Maz Kanata, Rogue One’s Chirrut Îmwe. No matter what happens: while the Jedi may no longer exist, The Force will live on. But what name will be given to those people if not Jedi?

Finally, there’s the question of Kylo Ren, the wannabe Darth Vader. Most likely, he will be the one to finish the Jedi, therefore ‘finishing what Darth Vader started’. However, things will likely not be that straight forward.

A little out-there theory hinted at earlier: what if Rey and Kylo switch places? What if she’s actually the main villain of the new Star Wars trilogy and Kylo Ren a redeeming good guy? Would Disney be willing to take that kind of risk? With the new red text, could that imply everything's about to go very badly in the Galaxy far, far away?

Everything discussed, of course, is hugely speculative, and theories will no doubt be thrown around the Internet, criticised, re-criticised and argued for and against. Unfortunately, we’ve got almost another 11 months until The Last Jedi hits cinemas. Until then, let’s speculate some more.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in