Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker not only brought an end to the conflict between the Jedi and the Sith, at least for the time being, but also explored these conflicting forces within the main character as well.
The question of Rey’s lineage has always been a huge enigma of Disney’s Sequel Trilogy, and the last entry in the Skywalker Saga finally provided us with some answers as to how a young scavenger from a far-off planet could access the Force in such a significant and powerful way. While The Last Jedi fought for the idea that even someone as unimportant as Rey could stand up to darkness, Abrams forsook that idea in favor of a more familiar approach to the matter of legacy.
That’s why, in one of the movie’s most pivotal scenes, we see a bit of foreshadowing that unveils Rey’s true heritage. When Chewbacca is taken abroad a transport by First Order operatives on Pasaana, Rey uses the Force to stop the ship from leaving. However, she’s interrupted by Kylo Ren’s opposing Force energy, and the two struggle for a while until Rey loses control and destroys the transport with a lightning blast.
Now, it’s true that the ability to emit Force lightning has always been attributed to the Dark Side of the Force, but according to the folks at ScreenRant, we could explain this incident in two ways.
First of all, Rey’s struggle with the Dark Side is something that we saw even in the previous movie. In The Rise of Skywalker, she’s still trying to figure out her part in this story and that’s why we see her leaning to the Dark Side in several instances throughout the plot. Even the famous Dark Rey scene in the Throne Room is one such example of Rey constantly battling her inner darkness.
Secondly, she’s the grandchild of Palpatine after all, so she’s naturally gifted in the ways of the Force, and the scene could serve as a bit of foreshadowing for the reveal that was yet to come.
And even if not for that, the fact that Rey utilizes both aspects of the Force in the movie (healing wounds and Force lightning) goes to show that she’s always been the one to bring balance by finishing what Anakin started. “Bring back the balance, Rey, as I did,” says the Chosen One at the end Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker when encouraging Rey to face Palpatine one last time.
Which one are you in favor of, though? Is it because of Rey’s struggle with the Dark Side, or her connection with Darth Sidious? Let us know in the comments below.