Rey is Obi Wan’s granddaughter
While the two most prevalent fan theories floating around are that Rey’s got the Skywalker genes going for her, another emerging theory is gaining some traction: that Rey is Obi Wan Kenobi’s granddaughter.
Rey as Obi Wan’s descendant would certainly add another Shakespearean element to the saga. The granddaughter of Ben Kenobi fighting the Skywalker son named after Ben Kenobi? Drama indeed. It would also make Star Wars not necessarily a series centered on Anakin Skywalker, but rather a series centered around the relationship between Anakin and Obi Wan.
In the prequels, their friendship suffered a deep betrayal with Anakin’s turn to the Dark Side, and Obi Wan initially defeated his pupil, maiming him so that he needed the Darth Vader mask to survive. In the original trilogy, Anakin got vengeance on his former master by slaying him, even as he mentored Anakin’s own son, bringing the battle full circle. But a final showdown by Anakin and Obi Wan’s grandchildren would definitely give the series a poetic ending to tie back to the very beginning.
Final theory: Rey’s parentage is unimportant
I know a lot people are rooting for this final fan theory, and it’s easy to see why: we all want to feel like the Force is more powerful than the blood ties that bind it.
And while the movies have certainly focused primarily on the legacy of the Skywalkers, the (canon!) animated series have proven that having Skywalker blood flowing through a character’s veins isn’t necessarily a predeterminate to their overall importance within the Star Wars saga. Characters like Anakin’s padawan, Ahsoka Tano, have been integral to the Skywalker legacy, despite not necessarily being biologically related to the Skywalkers themselves. In the Clone Wars series, we watch Anakin’s attachment to her begin his initial spiral of distrust towards the Jedi Council that aided in his eventual descent to the Dark Side. Meanwhile in the Star Wars: Rebels series, a brand new to us generation of Jedi is introduced as essential to the Rebellion in its fight against Darth Vader. If Rey was strong in the Force independent of any Skywalker connections, it would be a powerful message about the Force’s ability to choose the best person, regardless of their legacy.
And that’s a roundup of the most prominent theories regarding Rey’s parents. Head to the comments and let us know if you find any new fascinating ones of your own!
We want to hear your thoughts on this topic!
Write a comment below or submit an article to Hypable.