There is immense secrecy over the plot of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, but one convincing fan theory shows the possibility that it will mirror the story of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Per director J.J. Abrams' usual approach, there are not a lot of details currently available about the final movie in the Skywalker Saga. The first trailer for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker arrived earlier this year, but it arguably left fans with even more questions than possible answers. The biggest question that it raised was with the closing laugh of Sheev Palpatine aka Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid).
Darth Sidious will return for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and that fact has brought about countless theories over how this could be done. However, this is just one aspect of the film's plot, which will also dive deeper into Rey's parentage. The Star Wars sequel trilogy has been building towards a final confrontation between the Resistance and the First Order, as well as Rey (Daisy Ridley) and Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), their respective Force-wielders. The epic conclusion is highly anticipated, but the many threads Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will attempt to tie up means that all of this will connect somehow. According to one fan theory, the way that The Rise of Skywalker could do this may result in a plot that's similar to Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.
The theory comes from Redditor YahYahY and shows how the return of the Emperor could connect to Rey and Kylo. It states that Palpatine's entire plan has always been about finding a new host body, with Anakin originally envisioned as his optimal choice. When this didn't happen, Snoke became the embodiment of Palpatine until he could find a younger, more powerful host. The theory goes on to conclude that Rey is this host and that Zorri Bliss (Keri Russell) was hired to take Rey away from her family so Palpatine could have her. Instead, Zorri can't go through with this and goes on the run, raising Rey as her own until leaving her on Jakku and hidden away. This makes Palpatine turn to Ben Solo as his apprentice and eventual host for the Sith leader. But, when Zorri and Rey do reunite in The Rise of Skywalker, Rey is made aware of her backstory and determines that she must destroy Palpatine. It boils down to Palpatine possessing Kylo, with Kylo momentarily taking back control and telling Rey to kill him so that Palpatine will be defeated once and for all.
First and foremost, this is an excellent theory about the plot of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. But it also broadly resembles the twists and turns of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. In the James Gunn MCU movie, it is confirmed that Yondu was hired by Ego many years ago to steal Star-Lord for him. The reason for this was part of Ego's larger mission, known as the Expansion, which was Ego's way of taking over and reshaping the entire universe. He needed his son to see if he possessed the same Celestial capabilities, which Ego would then use to power the Expansion. But after years of delivering kids to Ego and learning of their deaths, Yondu refused to deliver Star-Lord and raised him as his own.
The comparison isn't beat-for-beat, but the similarities would be there if this theory pans out. Palpatine would be Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker's version of Ego, only with years of on-screen backstory and build-up. Meanwhile, Rey is comparable to Star-Lord, a powerful kid taken away from her family at a young age. The comparison for Yondu would be the combination of Zorri and Kylo, though. Zorri fulfills Yondu's earlier role as the one who kidnaps the kid but doesn't deliver them to an evil person, with Kylo then serving the function of Yondu's redemptive arc.
This all makes sense on paper, but it is just a theory that connects the dots, fills in holes, and is based on some unconfirmed leaked information. This may be precisely how Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker plays out, which will inevitably lead to questions over whether the similarities to Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 were conscious or not. But, it's just as - if not more - likely that Abrams and co-writer Chris Terrio have something completely different planned for the final entry.
