Star Wars: Episode IX is set to bring the franchise’s current era to a close, and if reports from various anonymous and not-so-anonymous sources are anything to go by, then director J.J. Abrams aims to go big for this final installment, both in terms of emotions and spectacle.
A similarly ambitious picture is painted by a new Reddit report that’s been getting an unusual amount of positive attention. Relaying a conversation had with an alleged source, user Arcantiger apparently heard it said that the “sheer scale” of the upcoming trilogy-closer rivals that of The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, and that this enthusiasm for the production is “shared across the board.” Kylo Ren’s arc in particular is singled out as a highlight, though the rumors of his uncle Luke coming back from the dead are dismissed as “nonsense.” In fact, it’s alleged that both Luke Skywalker and Lando Calrissian only have “small roles” in the film.
But while none of the above claims are particularly surprising, perhaps the most interesting part of the report is the assertion that the movie features “more deaths than you would expect,” including some that people may not be predicting.
Obviously, this is all just hearsay for the time being, but intriguing hearsay nonetheless. Though many of us are already expecting Kylo Ren to kick the bucket in this next picture, you have to wonder if a sad fate could be awaiting one of the young heroes like Rey or Finn.
Alternatively, imagine the teary-eyed response that Star Wars: Episode IX would get if Abrams dared to kill off one of the Original Trilogy’s more light-hearted players like R2-D2 or Chewbacca. In any case, we’ve got plenty of time to speculate before the film hits theaters on December 20th, 2019.