Star Wars: Episode VII’s Protagonist Could Be A Lady Named Skywalker
Let’s face it: Star Wars: Episode VII rumors are a dime a dozen these days, and it’s exhausting trying to keep up with them, especially when they’re occasionally leaked and then debunked within a 24-hour period. Some of the rumors, however, have the air of legitimacy about them, even if there is no official confirmation. One of those rumors is that the protagonist of Episode VII (and presumably VIII and IX as well) will be the daughter of Luke Skywalker.
Last week /Film founder Peter Sciretta tweeted the following coy message: “Who said the lead character in Star Wars Episode VII is going to be a male star?” That is most likely Sciretta just tossing out a bit of rhetorical hypothesizing to stir up the fanbase. The folks at Geek Tyrant, however, pointed out that this wasn’t the first time that question had been asked. They pointed to a rumor first reported by Market Saw, attributed an anonymous source: the possibility of Episode VII‘s lead being a female offspring of Luke. That idea was largely swallowed up by the onslaught of other speculation in the aftermath of the Disney/Star Wars announcement, but it certainly makes sense. It would allow the core group of Luke, Han, and Leia to be involved, but with the actors playing their actual ages, and the new trilogy would be a torch-passing between the old guard and the new generation we’ll be following in the upcoming films. Putting the focus on Luke Skywalker’s kid makes perfect sense, given the age of the original actors and the themes of family that are so important within Lucas’ franchise. As for the theoretical Skywalker daughter, in the Expanded Universe Luke and his wife, Mara Jade, had a son, Ben Skywalker. It’s unclear if this will be retconned out by the new trilogy, or if Luke will have both his son and a daughter.
The Market Saw source also said that the new trilogy was using Lucas’ treatments for Episodes VII, VIII, and IX as a launching point, but they were being updated to reflect the age of the original cast, and even suggested we might get two more trilogies, rather than just the one so-far announced.
Obviously, as with any case of “anonymous insiders,” we have to take all of this with a generous helping of salt, but these rumors sound at least as credible as anything else we’ve heard about the future of Star Wars. Disney clearly has big plans for the franchise, and a transitional movie or movies introducing new characters would make for a natural, smooth transition between old and new. Here’s the relevant quote:
There are two trilogies planned, all following an original overview by Lucas, which was always planned as a multi generational saga. Movies 10 – 12 are from my understanding about the offspring of the Skywalkers, set many years later with the surviving cast playing much older versions of themselves and featuring a female protagonist named Skywalker. This is something that I understand is being discussed as the latest trilogy may end up being an amalgamation of the two using themes and ideas from both, but still keeping the general story, also allowing for continuity of cast.
One way or another, we can look forward to Star Wars: Episode VII in 2015.
