Ever since Star Wars was released in 1978, the galaxy far, far away has mostly centered around Force-sensitive characters. The Star Wars galaxy is unfathomably enormous, containing over 3.2 billion habitable systems (according to Star Wars: The Visual Dictionary). But with such a wide galaxy to explore, it's surprising Disney has not done more with the Force beyond just Jedi and Sith. The movies and Disney+ TV shows continually focus on the (seemingly) rare Force-sensitives who usually tend to be Jedi. And despite Disney constantly saying its Jedi protagonists are one-of-a-kind, the odds of being Force-sensitive show there are far more stories to tell.
There has been no official population count for the entire galaxy in canon, but Legends suggested there were over one hundred quadrillion sentient beings during the original trilogy. Regardless of whether the population count is still accurate in Disney’s canon, the odds of becoming a Jedi seem slim. Going off what Kanan Jarrus told Ezra Bridger in Star Wars Rebels, there were at least ten thousand Jedi Knights before Order 66. If Jarrus’ number is accurate—and assuming it doesn’t account for Padawans and Masters—that means that about one in every 100 billion people was a Jedi.
What Are The Chances Of Being Force-Sensitive In Star Wars?
Of course, not all Force-sensitives end up becoming Jedi. According to Yoda, the Force resides in every living being. But only a few were able to feel its presence and act on it. One estimate (based on Legends data) put the number of Force-sensitives in the galaxy at roughly 81 billion (via Eleven-ThirtyEight), which would mean that roughly one in every 12,000 people were Force-sensitive. This would explain why Force-sensitive kids were hunted by the Empire during its reign, and why they were mostly recruited into the Jedi cult before it. Even so, that leaves an enormous amount of Force-sensitive people who aren’t part of the Jedi or Sith.
Disney could, of course, come out with new information establishing a canon number of Force-sensitives, retconning the Legends data - which means the chance to become a Force-sensitive user in Star Wars could change at any moment. But the fact remains that the majority of Force-sensitives are not Jedi or Sith. There are entire civilizations that do not even know or believe in the Force, despite likely having a few Force-sensitives among them who are unaware of their abilities. There were also hyper-Force-sensitive civilizations like the Dathomirian Nightsisters who utilized Force-magic. Even counting this, at present it seems around 0.0081 per cent of people in the galaxy are Force-sensitive.
Star Wars Must Take The Force Beyond Just Jedi & Sith
Star Wars is slowly starting to move away from the duality of the Jedi and Sith and explore other Force cults. Andor has proven that Star Wars can tell an amazing story without any Force-users, while characters like the Guardians of the Whills and Ahsoka Tano have shown one can still work for good without aligning with the Jedi. But there is still so much of the Force just waiting to be explored. With potentially billions of Force-sensitives not a part of the Jedi or Sith, it's time for Star Wars to expand the galaxy by telling a story from the perspective of a different Force-user.