Anghus Houvouras on whether Luke Skywalker could be a Sith Lord in Star Wars: The Force Awakens…
Star Wars: The Force Awakens is already a monster. The internet has been ablaze with theories and speculation about the new trailer, dissecting every frame for clues about the story, including Luke Owen’s theory that Kylo Ren may actually be Luke Skywalker. While considering his theory, a thought started percolating in the back of my mind. A reference from The Phantom Menace began to echo in my cerebellum.
When it comes to Sith… there are always two. A master and an apprentice.
If Kylo Ren is a Sith… is he the master or the apprentice? There is a moment from the first Force Awakens trailer, where we see Luke’s robotic hand reach out to R2D2. What piqued my interest in that particular shot is the black cloak he wears.
Perhaps Luke Skywalker is pulling Kylo Ren’s strings, but to what end? Could he have gone to the Dark Side, or has he embedded himself deep into the ranks of the First Order to help bring them down?
However, once I considered the ‘rule of two’ when it comes to Sith, it all made perfect sense. No one else we’ve seen in the marketing fits the role of Sith Lord other than Luke, who has been handled with much mystery. He’s the one character who we haven’t seen in detail. We’ve heard his voice and seen his hand… but there is little Luke in The Force Awakens marketing.
SEE ALSO: Mark Hamill wanted Luke Skywalker to go to the Dark Side – and he told J.J. Abrams about it
Kylo Ren has a Vader/Maul vibe. The fact that ‘Darth’ isn’t in his name seems like a calculated move to focus our attention elsewhere. If Kylo Ren is the apprentice… who is the master?
Luke Skywalker.
On a side note, it’s interesting how many theories revolve around the idea of Luke turning to the Dark Side. Perhaps because we’ve become so accustomed to movies having some kind of twist. Or because so much time has passed between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. There are huge stretches of time that we, the audience, will not have witnessed. At this early stage with so many unknowns, the hardcore fans spend a lot of brain cells trying to fill in the gaps.
But for me, right now, I’m calling it.
Luke Skywalker is a Sith Lord.
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Anghus Houvouras is a North Carolina based writer and filmmaker and the co-host of Across the Pondcast. Follow him on Twitter.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL18yMRIfoszEaHYNDTy5C-cH9Oa2gN5ng&v=m8ExzVWul3I
Originally published October 22, 2015. Updated April 14, 2018.
