‘Star Wars: Episode VIII’ Spoilers: Next Installation In The Series Will Be ‘Much Darker’ And Could Reveal Rey’s Past Connection To The Dark Side
The spoilers for Star Wars: Episode VIII are pointing to a much darker installation in the trilogy, with shooting for the 2017 film nearly halfway done and some insiders now sharing details about where the series will go next.
Shooting for the next movie started in February, and Screen Rant reported that it is close to halfway through production. Star John Boyega, who portrayed the stormtrooper-turned-resistance-fighter Finn, said in a recent interview with Variety that the movie will be “much darker” than Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
“It’s very easy. Rian Johnson is great. It’s a different take, darker, bigger. Someone will say: “How do you get bigger than ‘Force Awakens?’ But it’s crazy.”
Screen Rant noted that director Rian Johnson knows something about dark, as he was at the helm for some of the most gut-wrenching episodes of Breaking Bad.
It won’t all be dark, as Boyega also hinted at the possibility of a love story in the next movie.
“Yes, Finn and Rey – they’re just friends. Finn is a stormtrooper, so he doesn’t really know what’s going on. So the romance thing is something that’s going to be interesting in the next installment. It’s not going to go the way you think it’s going to go.”
‘Star Wars’ John Boyega: The Finn-Rey relationship takes an unexpected turn in Episode VIII https://t.co/ltTu0keYpI pic.twitter.com/SZ6saOPeSh
— Screener (@screenertv) May 14, 2016
Here's what @StarWars' @JohnBoyega thinks about a Rey & Finn romance! https://t.co/klBmVFZN4j pic.twitter.com/jTUaYMnq0g
— IGN (@IGN) May 13, 2016
There have already been spoilers hinting toward a darker storyline in Star Wars: Episode 8, especially related to the lineage of Rey. Last year’s installation in the Star Wars franchise gave fans only a glimpse of what appeared to be a shadowy past for Rey, who seemed to many to be a reflection of Luke Skywalker. Both were reluctant heroes living in the desert who had a strong but not entirely clear connection to the force.
Previous spoilers for Star Wars: Episode VIII point toward a focus on Rey’s background, including a possible connection to the Dark Side. MoviePilot picked up on that in the final lightsaber battle between Rey and Kylo Ren in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
The report noted that Rey could have a journey to discover her powers much like Luke Skywalker did in the original trilogy, but there may be a darker tinge to it.
“The interesting thing about how Rey was tempted by the Dark Side in The Force Awakens, is that it wasn’t actually Kylo Ren who persuaded her. Instead, it was her rage and impulse which tempted her to kill him. This lines up with what Yoda tells us in The Empire Strikes Back: that fear and hate lead to the Dark Side.”
Many believe the upcoming Star Wars movie will also reveal whether Rey came from one of two well-known families. Aside from the theory that she may be the daughter of Luke Skywalker, there is another camp that believes Rey is a descendant of Obi-Wan Kenobi. The Huffington Post pointed out that both Ewan McGregor’s and Alec Guinness’s voices could be heard during Rey’s flashback in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and others believe a statement from J.J. Abrams that loneliness is key to Rey’s origin is a reference to Obi-Wan’s exile between Episode III and Episode IV.
While spoilers indicate a darker Star Wars: Episode VIII, there may not end up being much about Rey until the next movie. Colin Trevorrow, director of Episode IX, hinted to Entertainment Tonight that he had information about Rey’s background and whether it fit the theories tossed around by fans — a major clue that this information may not be revealed until his turn in 2019.
[Image via Lucasfilm/Disney]
