Credit: LucasfilmWith some newly updated media, Star Wars has redesigned the ending of one of its most divisive movies ever: Episode IX–The Rise of Skywalker (2019).
Almost seven years after its release, Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker remains one of the most debated films in the franchise’s history. What began as a divisive theatrical experience has since evolved into something more nuanced — a story being slowly, carefully reassembled through comics, novels, and supplemental media. And at the center of it all is Rey.
Directed by J.J. Abrams, The Rise of Skywalker closed out the nine-film Skywalker Saga with enormous expectations and uneven results. The film followed Rey (Daisy Ridley), Finn (John Boyega), and Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) as the Resistance mounted a final stand against the resurrected Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid), hidden on the Sith world of Exegol.
Audiences were caught off guard by the density of it all. Palpatine’s abrupt return, the underuse of the Knights of Ren, the introduction of Exegol with little runway, and the rushed emotional beats between Rey and Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) left critics and fans sharply divided. Many also felt the film spent too much energy walking back choices made in Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: Episode VIII–The Last Jedi (2017), sacrificing narrative cohesion in the process.
Despite its spectacular set pieces and the emotional weight of closing a four-decade saga, the film’s reception was far from triumphant. Of all the film’s controversial decisions, one stood above the rest: Rey’s final declaration on Tatooine.
After defeating Palpatine by channeling the spirits of past Jedi, Rey traveled to Luke and Leia’s childhood home, buried their lightsabers, and — when asked her name — answered simply: Rey Skywalker. The intention was clear. Having learned she was Palpatine’s granddaughter, Rey was rejecting her bloodline and choosing her own family. It was meant to be triumphant. For many, it wasn’t.
Critics of the moment argued it directly contradicted one of The Last Jedi‘s most resonant ideas: that Rey didn’t need a legendary name to matter. Kylo Ren’s dismissal of her parents as nobodies had, in that film, become a kind of liberation — proof that heroism wasn’t inherited. The Rise of Skywalker appeared to pull back from that idea entirely, replacing it with a borrowed legacy.
The debate has never fully quieted. But a new explanation has added meaningful context to a scene many had written off.
Rey’s Own Words Change the Conversation
The newly updated Insight Editions’ “The Secrets of the Jedi: The Chronicles of Luke Skywalker” includes a passage that reframes the Tatooine moment in a way the film never quite managed.
In it, Rey reflects directly on her choice, explaining that she took the Skywalker name not to claim a legacy, but to honor the man who believed in her: “I had to continue the fight and finish what he started. I had to stop Palpatine from rising again and regaining power. To redeem Ben Solo once and for all. And to proudly wear my Master’s name while doing so, in honor of his life and his sacrifice. Luke Skywalker may be gone from this plane, just like all the Jedi who came before him… but he will live forever.”
She then echoes the climactic moment of the film itself, connecting her identity to something far larger than a single surname: “Because, in the end, I am all the Jedi. And maybe we all are.” That final line carries significant weight. It suggests the Skywalker legacy isn’t a bloodline or even a name — it’s a commitment to the values Luke embodied. Anyone who upholds those values, Rey implies, carries that legacy forward.
This reframing transforms what felt like a grab for legitimacy into something more quietly profound: a student honoring her teacher by refusing to let his dream die. It doesn’t erase the film’s pacing problems or its storytelling missteps, but it does give one of its most contested moments the emotional grounding it originally lacked.
Lucasfilm’s Larger Effort to Revisit the Film
Rey’s reflection is part of a broader pattern. Since 2019, Lucasfilm and its publishing partners have worked steadily to fill the gaps left by The Rise of Skywalker.
Marc Sumerak’s “The Secrets of the Sith” clarified how Snoke was created. Dave Filoni’s The Bad Batch explored Palpatine’s interest in Force-sensitive cloning. Tie-in novels and animated series have quietly expanded storylines that the film introduced but never fully developed.
The most direct reexamination came in early 2025, when Marvel published a five-issue comic adaptation of the film. Written by Jody Houser and illustrated by Will Sliney, the series retold the story with entirely new scenes not included in the theatrical cut. Its fifth and final issue delivered something fans had wanted since 2019: a visual depiction of the “All the Jedi” sequence, in which the Force ghosts of Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ahsoka Tano, Luke Skywalker, and others appear alongside Rey during her confrontation with Palpatine.
In the film, those voices were heard but never seen. The comic made them visible for the first time — a small change with an outsized emotional impact.
Where Star Wars Goes From Here
The rehabilitation of The Rise of Skywalker is happening against a backdrop of genuine uncertainty about the franchise’s future.
Lucasfilm has not released a Star Wars film since 2019. That changes in May 2026 with The Mandalorian and Grogu, directed by Jon Favreau, followed by Shawn Levy’s Star Wars: Starfighter in 2027. Three additional films — James Mangold’s Dawn of the Jedi, Dave Filoni’s New Republic crossover, and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy’s New Jedi Order featuring Daisy Ridley — were announced in 2023 but have gone largely quiet since.
Further complicating matters, former Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy confirmed in 2024 that producer Simon Kinberg will oversee a brand-new Star Wars trilogy. Whether that series incorporates Rey — described by one source as “the most valuable cinematic asset” the franchise has — or runs parallel to Obaid-Chinoy’s film remains unclear.
What is clear is that Rey’s story isn’t finished. And thanks to a growing body of supplemental work, neither is the conversation around how that story has already been told.
How do you feel about Star Wars continuing to reframe parts of the Disney sequel trilogy? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!
