Star Wars: Episode IX star Oscar Isaac likens the Resistance to revolutionary guerrilla fighters pushing back against an evil empire. The Skywalker saga's sequel trilogy follows the conflict between the Resistance and the First Order, which bears many similarities to the Galactic Civil War that preceded it. The villains are well-resourced and have a substantial army at their disposal, while the plucky heroes are forced to scrap with whatever supplies they can find. Leia's resistance never got the full support of the Republic, viewing the general as a political pariah during what was thought to be a peace time.

For all their resiliency, the Resistance took heavy losses in The Last Jedi, with all of the surviving members fitting in the Millennium Falcon at the end of the film. There should be a time jump leading into Episode IX that allows them to rebuild their forces, but they're still going to have to scratch and claw their way to victory. Isaac has a pretty interesting analogy for their current state.

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In an interview with USA Today, the actor was of course asked about the future of Star Wars. He shared his perspective on the Resistance, comparing them to Revolutionary War heroes and even Cuban guerrillas:

“[They] are guerrilla fighters, adhering closer to something like the Revolutionary War fighters or even the guerrillas in Cuba with Che and Fidel and all these guys living in the mountains, coming down to do some attacks, and going back and trying to hide from the 'empire' of the United States. It's that kind of ragged at this point."

It should be noted that this isn't exactly new territory for Star Wars. The original trilogy fit very well into this idea, with the ragtag Rebel Alliance organizing attacks against the Empire from secret bases, before having to go on the run after being discovered. Episode IX is simply going to continue the tradition, while hopefully putting a new spin on things to keep it feeling fresh. Odds are, the Resistance will have regrouped at new headquarters by the time Star Wars 9 begins, but they'll need to be careful so they aren't found. It's unknown just how many allies and troops they'll have at their disposal, meaning whatever attacks they do stage need to be as effective as possible.

Plot details are being kept firmly under wraps for now, but leaked set photos have shown Isaac's Poe Dameron on some sort of mission with his buddy Finn and Chewbacca. There were other characters present in those images (including one theorized to be Naomi Ackie's mystery individual), so it'll be interesting to see how all of those pieces fall into place. Episode IX director J.J. Abrams is attempting to balance a lot with his latest film, so hopefully he manages to pull it off and deliver a satisfying conclusion to a story audiences have been following for 40 years.

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Source: USA Today

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