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Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker Redux Ideas thread — Page 166

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Lol, you got me there. I look forward to seeing your work on Kylo’s revamped arc, and if I get enough ideas, I’ll attempt a full edit of the movie. Not that it’ll be any different from many other TROS re-edits, but it’s worth a shot.

“The Dark Side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural.”
-Sheev Palpatine, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith (2005)

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If there was a way to turn Luke’s exile into Kylo’s exile, that’d be more thematically fitting an ending.

Kylo dying was trite and cliche and also completely predictable given that it was Disney. But having him alive, alone, living forever with his crimes…that’s more interesting a fate.

You’d have to re-edit TLJ and ROS heavily, though. Massive undertaking, would require a lot of deepfake skill to change Hamill to Driver.

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Okay…

“The Dark Side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural.”
-Sheev Palpatine, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith (2005)

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thebluefrog said:

Kylo dying was trite and cliche and also completely predictable given that it was Disney. But having him alive, alone, living forever with his crimes…that’s more interesting a fate.

I personally believe it wouldn’t be necessary for him to be completely alone. I see him trying to start the Jedi again with Rey at his side, but obviously the galaxy wouldn’t see those Jedi as good people as a result (especially if it somehow leaked that Rey is Palpatine’s granddaughter). I see that story as pretty interesting, where the Jedi have to prove themselves to be good.

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GMatias said:

One thing I’ve been thinking of is what Ben could do post-Kylo if an edit were to have him survive Exegol. I’ve seen ideas of him going off as a Caine-in-Kung-Fu-type nomad to try & atone for his actions, but that doesn’t seem like enough of a benefit for all the trouble of redeeming him. Even if he straight-up defected right after Exegol, yes he wouldn’t part of the First Order’s arsenal, but that still seems like missing an opportunity.

This is an interesting idea, GMatias! I’ve also thought about how redeemed-Ben could take advantage of his role as Supreme Leader, I don’t think I’ve heard this exact idea before. My idea was to replace Finn’s ADR line at the end of the film, “People are rising up all over the galaxy” with a random Resistance person saying, “Ren has commanded the First Order to surrender!”

Regardless of the debate over whether he should live or not, it is interesting to consider the practicality of some of potential endings where Ben lives.

I definitely think Ben meeting Rey on Tatooine would probably be the simplest option. I’ve actually made some concept images for how it could look, and determined which shots could be used to accomplish it. I guess the question would then be whether the movie ends with Rey and Ben on Tatooine together, or Ben staying on Tatooine while he watches Rey leave on the Falcon.

I know others have mentioned the idea of Ben exiling himself on Ahch-To at the end of the movie. I believe Pablo Hidalgo said he actually suggested this idea when TROS was being developed. I think the best way someone could construct this ending would be to use shots of Ben standing on the edge of the Death Star ruins, before he talks with Han’s memory, and make it so Ben standing on that rock outcrop where Luke becomes one with the Force.

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CamSMurph said:

How would I re-edit TRoS? Well, for starters, I’d throw out the concept of force healing since it pretty much came out of nowhere. Then, I’d have Palpatine kill Kylo by throwing him into the pit. Lastly, I’d have Rey proclaim, “Just Rey,” at the end of the film, and her arc would come full circle.

Firstly, Rey has the Jedi texts, so of course she’d get something from that.

Secondly, killing off Ben at that point misses the point; having Ben heal Rey makes sense from a thematic perspective, he’s fulfilling what Vader started.

Lastly, “just Rey” also misses the point; “Rey Skywalker” is there to show how the Skywalkers’ legacy will live on after the actual bloodline becomes extinct, which is the point of the entire trilogy.

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 (Edited)

I don’t think anyone here really wants to argue if these changes should be made or not, at least in this General Ideas thread. I think any idea is worth discussing how they can be accomplished for those who want to make these changes, regardless if it “misses the point” or not.

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TestingOutTheTest said:

CamSMurph said:

How would I re-edit TRoS? Well, for starters, I’d throw out the concept of force healing since it pretty much came out of nowhere. Then, I’d have Palpatine kill Kylo by throwing him into the pit. Lastly, I’d have Rey proclaim, “Just Rey,” at the end of the film, and her arc would come full circle.

Firstly, Rey has the Jedi texts, so of course she’d get something from that.

Secondly, killing off Ben at that point misses the point; having Ben heal Rey makes sense from a thematic perspective, he’s fulfilling what Vader started.

I agree with both of your points here. Although, if somebody else doesn’t like these ideas then I don’t see the harm in them removing it for their own edits.

Lastly, “just Rey” also misses the point; “Rey Skywalker” is there to show how the Skywalkers’ legacy will live on after the actual bloodline becomes extinct, which is the point of the entire trilogy.

This is why I’m kinda torn. If Ben Solo showed up on Tatooine, I’d imagine Rey would become Rey Solo instead of Rey Skywalker in that scene. But that kinda goes against the title of the movie and the purpose of the trilogy. I’d be interested in hearing other opinions on how to solve this problem. Maybe replace the Jedi organization with an organization called “Skywalkers”? Not sure.

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Jar Jar Bricks said:

This is why I’m kinda torn. If Ben Solo showed up on Tatooine, I’d imagine Rey would become Rey Solo instead of Rey Skywalker in that scene. But that kinda goes against the title of the movie and the purpose of the trilogy. I’d be interested in hearing other opinions on how to solve this problem. Maybe replace the Jedi organization with an organization called “Skywalkers”? Not sure.

That doesn’t necessarily have to be the point of the film from the standpoint of somebody’s fan edit, though. Even without “Rey Skywalker”, you can still have two other meanings of that title that can be emphasized in a fan edit.

  1. The rise of Skywalker legend, through Luke’s actions on Crait.
  2. The rise of the the last (biological) Skywalker, Ben Solo, returning to the light.

The idea of an a new order of Force users called “Skywalkers” is also interesting, and I know people speculated on that happening. Plus, it fits the naming convention of the last film in each trilogy if Skywalker became a new order, separate from the Sith and Jedi dichotomy.

If you went with this idea, maybe you could pull it off by changing Rey’s dialogue with the old lady a little.

The old lady could say, “There’s been no one here for so long. Who are you?”

Then, Rey could pause, look over at Luke and Leia’s ghosts, smile, look back and say, “I’m a Skywalker”. Maybe some would see that as vague, but that could be a good thing. People could choose to see it either as her taking the Skywalker name, or as her claiming it as a title. As if she were saying, “I’m a Jedi.”

You would just have to find a good sound byte of her saying “a” that fits the sentence, as well as alter her mouth to make it seem like she is saying “a” instead of “Rey”. I wonder if you could even trim her saying “Rey” enough to make it sound like “a”?

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Well, seeing as how I’m mostly talking from the perspective of a novelization, nothing is really out of the question. In that case, it wouldn’t necessarily have to be spoken aloud by a character. Perhaps instead I could write something like (rough):

Twin suns rose on the horizon. The two halves of the dyad embraced each other under the light of dawn. At the homestead of one of the greatest Jedi, a new order was rising. The order of Skywalker.

Thing is, something like that would just make me want the title of the story to be “A New Order” (referring to both Palpatine’s Final Order as well as this new Skywalker order).

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 (Edited)

Something I’ve been thinking about, based on RogueLeader’s idea for Rey to receive a vision of the Death Star when she picks up the dagger on Kylo’s ship…

It feels (to me, at least) to be the perfect moment to reveal Palpatine’s return structurally (“structurally” as in, at this point of the movie - about a third to halfway through the film). It would mean that the stakes for the film are allowed to grow naturally as it progresses - we’d have been told about the Sith Fleet ahead of time, but now we know how the Fleet came to be. It’s not just introducing some dumb power spike (like “planet-destroying Star Destroyers”) that’s never relevant to the film again; it’s a raising of the stakes that actually has relevance, and changes the scope and urgency of the mission.

Plus, it makes Grandpa Palp’s return a legitimate twist, rather than a hasty retcon for the final film.

So, how would you go about doing it?

  • In the Exegol opening, cut out most of Palpy’s dialogue. Maybe keep some vague line like “Come to me” (“Huh, what? Who said that? That sounded like Palpatine!”), or just replace the whole thing with Sith Whispers. Cut to black with a little music sting as Kylo walks off camera, to investigate Palpatine something. (“Ooh, what’s he looking at? What’s on Exegol?” Mystery, baby; that’s what.) Fade in on Rey.
  • During the Resistance Intel Meeting, trim direct references to Palpatine. Focus on the discussions about the Sith Fleet on Exegol. “It’s gonna blow us all up if we don’t find it!”
  • Rey tells Leia they have to find a way to find a Way-Finder (God, this movie…) in order to “Find Exegol. Find the Emperor.
  • Kylo Boardroom Meeting is fine. They just talk about the Sith Cultists, the Fleet, and a mysterious “he.” (Who’s “he,” you ask? It’s a mystery, baby!!)
  • In the Pasaana Skype Call, replace Kylo’s line “Palpatine wants you dead” with the later “Wherever you are, you’re hard to find.” Or, heck, just have him stare at Rey menacingly. I don’t care.
  • Move Kylo’s Palpatine conversation back to right before Endor. Or overdub the scene completely. Have Kylo talk to himself, something like, “Please, Rey. Join me. Let me find you.” Or even call back to TFA, say “Grandfather, help me find her.”
  • Slot in a shot of the Emperor during Rey’s Dagger Vision, have his laugh linger in the air after the vision fades. She whispers a disbelieving “No…” in response.
  • Replace Kylo’s next line with the previously swapped out “Palpatine wants you dead.”
  • Re-add the scene of Palps raising the Sith Fleet out of the ground to right after Rey leaves Ahch-To. He’s preparing the Fleet to depart.

The rest of it should play out exactly the same, I’m pretty sure.

So, in summary, you’d get:

  • A better structured sense of building stakes.
  • A surprising, twist Emperor reveal that’s actually built towards and hinted at, rather than a quick, “Hello, boys! I’m baaaaaaack!” in the first five minutes.
  • Gives Palpatine’s return more personal stakes to Rey, as she’s the one who discovers it…instead of Hux?
  • Palpatine’s plan doesn’t contradict itself every other scene. (Kill her! Don’t kill her! Bring her to me! No, lure her here! Oh, she’s here anyway? Kill me! You won’t? Fine, kill her! No wait, I can just suck up her life force! Ha, I’m a genius!)
  • The Sith Fleet rising is now an actual source of tension, and is a visual representation of the Fleet being ready to depart. (Shit Poe, you’ve gotta take them down now!) No more “Okay boys, you in place? Great. Just hang out here for 16 hours an arbitrary amount of time until I feel like launching the ships, cool? Maybe wait for like 20 minutes after the Resistance arrives. Then you can start leaving.”
  • Have Rey say “No…” to something actually significant while holding the Dagger, instead of *checks notes* repeating an echo of a vision of a memory of herself that the knife reminded her of? (God, this movie…)

I know that we’re trying to incorporate the Dagger-Vision angle for Ascendant, which is the first piece to all of this; but this felt like one of those “dramatic changes” that Hal probably wouldn’t jump on right away - hence my suggesting it here. But you never know, Hal…

The Rise of Skywalker: Untold - A “Rey Nobody” edit of Ep. IX | Looking for voices and VFX - Please reach out if interested!

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RogueLeader said:

I know others have mentioned the idea of Ben exiling himself on Ahch-To at the end of the movie. I believe Pablo Hidalgo said he actually suggested this idea when TROS was being developed. I think the best way someone could construct this ending would be to use shots of Ben standing on the edge of the Death Star ruins, before he talks with Han’s memory, and make it so Ben standing on that rock outcrop where Luke becomes one with the Force.

I think you could also maybe repurpose some footage from Silence (he looks older plus I know a lot of that movie has some cool shore shots and whatnot).

On the other hand, for those wanting Ben to join Rey, I think you could use footage from “The Man Who Killed Don Quixote” (although to be perfectly fair, I actually haven’t seen this movie).

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Sorry to change the topic… So, let’s say Rey’s parents weren’t mere plotpoints and were actual characters. What would you name them?

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Not my idea, but I’ve seen one headcanon idea that Mrs. Rey was named Solana, after “Rey Solana” in Duel of the Fates.

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I really like that name. Thanks Testing. My one concern with it is it sounds similar to “Solo”, but since it would be her first name that doesn’t matter much.

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Speaking of Rey’s parents, a while back I proposed the idea of removing the idea of Rey’s parents being good people who loved her and wanted to protect her - the retcon that her parents actually loved her undermines her arc in TLJ of moving on and learning to stop caring about her parents who threw their own daughter away like garbage, because in TRoS it turns out Rey stopped caring about her parents in TLJ all for nothing.

The idea consisted of removing hints, scenes and lines about Rey’s parents being good people who loved her, and at one point I came up with the idea of having it so her parents abandoned her because she is a Palpatine (combined with her Force-sensitivity).

REY: You said you knew the rest of my story. You knew why my parents threw me away. Why? Tell me.

KYLO REN: Because they knew what you would become. You don’t just have power, you have his power. You’re his granddaughter. You are a Palpatine.

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I also like that a ton. It subtly dodges the idea that Palpatine wanted her dead at the time he was looking for her (which is what Rey originally asks him). Will probably use something similar to that in my novelization.

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I actually don’t like Solana. Solana basically sounds like a combination of Solo and Organa, just how Kylo sounds like a combination of Skywalker and Solo.

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Not a fan of Solana myself for how obvious the mashup is, but at the same time I just realized the Kylo mashup after years due to your comment lmao so maybe it’s not obvious or maybe I’m just blind

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Kylo sort of makes sense as a daft mashup though, because it comes from Ben’s own head (and in a comic he suggests he came up with it when he was a child). Solana would be an out-of-universe daft mashup.

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Maybe I’ll just go to a random name generator for Star Wars or something.

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Yeah, Sade nailed it.

I’m guessing you are asking in regards to your novelization rewrite, Bricks. I have some ideas I could throw out, though.

I know some early names for Rey’s character in Lucas’ earlier treatments were Taryn, Thea, and “Winkie” apparently. Thanks George. Under JJ, Thea eventually became Sally, then Kira, Echo, and finally Rey. Maybe you could go with one of these names for Rey’s mom (preferably not Winkie…)

For Rey’s dad, I think it depends if you’re going with him being a clone/strandcast, or his biological son. If I recall, early Star Wars drafts had George naming the Emperor as Xerxes XII. Thanks, George. I could imagine him having more of a clone identification number rather than a name, like, X-12. The Greek letter X is pronounced like “kai” (spelt “chi”), so maybe he could’ve gone by Kai.

Palpatine actually had a possible son in Legends called Triclops, who was a mutant with a third eye. His mother was actually Palpatine’s creepy aid, Sly Moore. While Rey’s dad obviously doesn’t have a third eye, maybe you could pay homage to this weird piece of Legends by having his name be something similar, like Tristan. As “rey” means “king” in Spanish (which I guess fits with the Rey Palpatine reveal), Tristan is similar to the Spanish word “triste” which means “sad”. It would be fitting, since his existence was a disappointment to both Palpatine and much of the audience.

Anyway, just some ideas.