With the premiere of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story hitting movie theaters this Friday, I have been delving into the theories of others who are just as invested in the Galaxy Far Far Away as I am. Just to clarify, Rogue One is not another episode in the Star Wars anthology. Rogue One is a standalone film featuring new characters that is taking place parallel to Episode III. It is speculated (and all but confirmed) that Rogue One follows the story of the rebels who attempt to thwart the Sith's efforts to successfully put the Death Star into orbit.
Spoiler: They lose, obviously.
So far we know little about the ins-and-outs of the upcoming film, but audiences have been tirelessly theorizing about the identity of the female main character, Jyn Erso. There have been tons of speculation thrown around about Jyn's connection to the rest of the Star Wars characters, if there is any. Many theorists note the physical similarities between Jyn and the other women in the Star Wars series. Here are just some ideas about Jyn's identity and to who she could be connected to and how:
Shmi Skywalker
(Image via StarWars.com)
Shmi Skywalker, Anaken's biological mother was the first person to come to mind when Jyn's identity is discussed. Is it possible that Jyn could be somehow blood related to Anaken, and therefore to Darth Vader? Let's not totally rule it out. Shmi's background is a massive gray area, so it is absolutely possible that Jyn could pop up somewhere behind the scenes in her story line.
Padme Amidala
(Image via Wookiepeedia-Wiki)
Padme Amidala is possibly one of the most important characters in the entire Star Wars anthology. Aside from the fact that she's super gorgeous and a badass political activist, she is Anaken-soon-to-be-Vader's baby mama, and most importantly, the biological mother of famed twins Luke and Leia. Many fans have suggested that Jyn is Padme's niece, since in the original stories of George Lucas' Star Wars, Padme has a sister that has two young girls. That timeline doesn't really work itself out, unless Padme's sister was significantly older than her, so that one of her daughters could be a young woman by the time Padme is giving birth to her twins, since it is assumed that Rogue One and Revenge of the Sith are taking place simultaneously.
Leia Organa
(Image via Michael's Review of the Week)
Leia Organa, known for rocking her epic side buns, wearing a skimpy slave outfit and kissing her brother, is probably the most famous female character in Star Wars. There has been little speculation about Jyn's connection to Leia because frankly, it would be nearly impossible for there to actually be one. Leia is an infant during the time that Rogue One is taking place, and we know who her biological parents and her adoptive parents are, so there is little room for connection or error.
Rey
(Image via Wikipedia)
Rey (no last name) is the most recent female lead to appear. She made her debut in Star Wars: The Force Awakens and people went nuts. What we know about Rey: pretty much nothing. We know that she's basically an orphan that scavenges crashed space ships to pay her way and that she is force sensitive with some type of connection to Luke Skywalker. Fans think that Jyn could hypothetically be Rey's biological mother. Aside from the similarities in their physical attributes, which is a moot point because every other female character in the series shares these attributes, they both are the only females to speak with British accents. Does the time line work out? Maybe, hypothetically speaking, and it would be a super cool connection to make.
What do you think? Is some outlandish connection to Padme possible? or have the producers introduced a new hierarchy of badass women including Jyn and Rey? Or is it possible that Jyn is a completley fresh and unconnected character? Sure. Is that likely? Absolutely not, this is George Lucas we're talking about after all. I hope you all enjoy the film if you will be among the opening-night crowd, and keep your eyes peeled for my review of Rogue One next week.
