The second trailer for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker dropped the bombshell that we can expect to see Rey turn to the Dark Side – at least in some shape or form – in the upcoming Episode IX. Naturally, no one involved in the movie has revealed any details about exactly what this means, but some new comments from star Daisy Ridley tell us that she really enjoyed playing Dark Rey, in whatever capacity that was.
Ridley was asked about portraying Rey’s darker side in Rise while in conversation with Portuguese movie site Adoro Cinema. Here’s how the actress responded, as translated into English:
“It’s fun to play someone’s best version, and then the worst. It’s an amazing thing to do as an actress, but we can’t do it often. […] I felt very good. That’s the most I can say, unfortunately.”
This echoes what Ridley has said before on the topic. In an interview with Variety, the star said that it was “great” to dig into that side of Rey, commenting that she thinks the storyline reflects the fight within ourselves between our better instincts and darker impulses. So, do the actress’ responses to the Evil Rey enigma help us decode the role that the dark doppelgänger will play in the film?
Ridley definitely seems to be speaking about Dark Rey as the true dark side of her character. There’s been talk of Rey being possessed by Palpatine, for instance, but these comments don’t seem to be suggesting that. Another common theory is that Dark Rey is a Force vision or hallucination, which is possible as well, as the image of herself going all Kylo Ren might be a fear pulled from her own mind. Alternatively, the heroine could meet her for real somehow. Cloning, maybe?
Time will tell, but all the answers will be revealed when Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker finally arrives in theaters on December 20th.