Two years ago Lucasfilm and Disney did the unthinkable by releasing Force Awakens, the first Star Wars film in a new trilogy based off the original. Not only were fans getting another trilogy, but a slew of new and returning characters too.
One of the most mysterious new additions to the Force Awakens was General Armitage Hux — the passionate and slightly mad commander of Starkiller Base. Like a bunch of the new characters in Force Awakens, Hux didn’t have a backstory, nor did he fall into the roll of the main antagonist.
Recent interviews with Domhnall Gleeson however show that Rian Johnson is more interested in his character for The Last Jedi. “When I read it I needed to talk to him (Johnson), and I think that’s always a good sign,” said Gleeson in an interview with Collider. “I was like, ‘Wow there’s some stuff there which is kind of—not scary but different to what I expected,’ and that’s a really, really nice thing.”
For fans of the Dark Side of the force, this statement was excellent news indeed. Much like fandom didn’t understand the relationship between Darth Vader and Grand Moff Tarkin in A New Hope until reading the books, audiences were left feeling the same way about Kylo Ren and General Armitage Hux.
Here are the 15 Things You Didn’t Know About Star Wars' General Hux.
15. He Enlisted Phasma To Take Out His Father
Phasma only looks out for herself and her personal survival, making it an easy choice for her to side with Armitage in getting rid of Brendol. Brendol knew too much about her past and who she was. Armitage, however, only knew that she was handpicked by his father to train the solders in his program.
Hux wanted his father gone so he could step into the role as commander of the child program, desiring more power and dreaming of one day ruling the galaxy.
Armitage used the destruction of her people on Parnassos as an excuse to enlist Phasma and she played along, knowing it would grant her more power too.
Upon her return to Parnassos she created the armor seen in Force Awakens and grabbed a deadly poisonous beetle which would be the weapon used to kill Brendol.
14. He’s In A Constant Power Struggle With Kylo Ren
The addition of Kylo Ren to the First Order ranks threw a huge boulder in General Hux’s quickly rising career path. Very similar to how Phasma derailed Cardinals path within the training of the child recruits.
Because of this, the two are constantly blaming one another for failures and see the other as an obstacle. Can you imagine the power they could have if they actually worked together?
However, that won’t happen as both are fighting to take over the throne of Supreme Leader Snoke.
As the old saying goes, “Absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Domhnall Gleeson recently stated in an interview regarding The Last Jedi that “Hux has been pushed to a place where his position is in real jeopardy, and people make really bad decisions when they get desperate. Hux and Kylo Ren are vying for power and for Snoke’s attention.”
13. He Was Abused By His Father
Brendol Hux was an abusive man before fathering Armitage, but the circumstances of his son’s birth made Brendol take out his anger on Armitage.
This led to physical beatings and mental abusiveness during Armitage Hux’s younger days. Brendol is recorded saying that “Armitage is a weak-willed boy. Thin as a slip of paper and just as useless.”
While Armitage was learning everything he could about his father's child soldier program, he tried to avoid Brendol as much as possible. It wouldn’t be until Grand Admiral Sloane vowed to watch over and protect him that he would come out of his shell.
Sloane told Brendol on the way to the outer regions, “Your son Armitage. I know you don't like him. I suspect you hurt him—psychologically or physically, I don't know, and I don't care. You will leave him alone. And you will teach the boy everything that you know. Are we clear?”
12. He Was Conceived Through An Affair
The Empire was founded on the ideals of one ruling authority, along with laws to maintain that power. However, not every action of power was deemed acceptable.
Brendol Hux thrived on being an Imperial officer, but he let the power go to his head when he cheated on his wife Maratelle with the kitchen help. Out of the affair came a surprise that Brendol wasn’t expecting, a son whom he named Armitage.
Other Imperial officers noted Brendol’s so-called sloppiness with his personal affairs. “He has a child— a b*stard boy, as I understand,” said Fleet Admiral Gallius Rax. “Not born of his wife, Maratelle, but of some… kitchen woman.”
Thanks to Brendol Hux’s rank as an officer, the incident was mostly swept under the rug while Armitage learned everything he could from his father.
11. He Came To The Rescue Of Brendol and Phasma
Brendol Hux was doing a routine run, visiting planets while looking for children and warriors to enlist in his army.
During his visit to Parnassos, an automated defense system ended up shooting down his shuttle. It would be on the planet of Parnassos that Brendol would meet Phasma.
When the two finally reached Brendol’s ship, it was Armitage who was standing by on alert and came to his father’s rescue. On the return flight back to the Absolution, Armitage would also become acquainted with Phasma as Brendol ordered a bombardment on the planet of Parnassos.
Armitage had a disgusted look on his face directed towards his father, but it wasn’t because of the bombardment — the look was one of anger over his father being alive.
10. His First Taste Of Power Turned A Scared Boy Into A Monster
During his early teenage years, Gallius Rax pulled Armitage aside into a room full of child soldiers normally under the authority of his father Brendol.
Upon first entering the room, Armitage became afraid and intimidated by the older kids, still unaware of what was about to take place. Rax then announced that he was giving Armitage command of the young soldiers as a gift.
Armitage thanked Gallius Rax for the honor as Rax informed the kid soldiers they were to serve the young Hux and dedicate their lives to him.
When Rax left the room, Armitage was no longer a scared little boy himself. In fact, he was elated by his newly appointed power.
His first action of overseeing the child soldiers was ordering one to attack another for no reason. The orders were carried out without hesitation.
9. Domhnall Gleeson Helped Create General Hux
Domhnall Gleeson isn’t the type of actor to chase after giant roles for fame, which is why he almost turned down the opportunity to play General Hux in the Force Awakens. Prior to Star Wars, Gleeson was most notably recognized for his role as Caleb in Ex Machina, along with writing episodes for Your Bad Self.
Allegedly, Abrams agreed to let Gleeson have input with the story team, convincing Domhnall that this was a role he wanted. He and the production team suggested that Hux be an obsessive character, one who thrives for ultimate power and sleeps very little.
These ideas were accepted, and that’s why Hux is so uptight in the Force Awakens. “There’s an air of superiority, and being better than those people around you,” said Domhnall during an interview. “He’s pretty ruthless.”
8. He’s A Scientific and Strategic Genius
Following the battle of Jakku, secured research logs were discovered concerning the planet which would become Starkiller Base.
Armitage Hux was put in charge of what would become the unofficial base for the First Order. He oversaw the mining for the planets kyber crystal deposits, and helped construct the base into becoming the ultimate weapon for the First Order.
At the time of its destruction during the Force Awakens, Starkiller Base housed a majority of the First Order’s army and navy — of which General Hux was in charge of with Phasma as his second in command.
Armitage also took his father’s child training program to new levels, giving the First Order the numbers they needed to fight against the New Republic. With Phasma and Cardinal overseeing the training, Hux created a superior program to that of his father Brendol.
7. He Was Born A Week After The Destruction Of The Second Death Star
General Hux was raised in an environment which despised everything the New Republic stood for. The beginning of the long fall of the Empire was all that he knew growing up, desiring one day to rule the galaxy himself and return order.
Armitage served with his father as a child on the planet of Arkanis, learning everything he could about Brendol’s child training program.
The destruction of the Death Star, along with the death of Darth Vader and Darth Sidious, opened the door for a baby like Hux to have a place of power.
The defeat strengthened his resolve to build an Empire stronger and better than the one Palpatine had built. As he continued to grow, others noted his abilities and made sure he survived long enough to fulfil his dreams.
6. Gallius Rax Believed Armitage Is The Future Of The First Order
Gallius Rax included Armitage along with his father and a handful of other Imperial officers in his Shadow Council (successors to the current Imperial Ruling Council), which would become the First Order.
When Arkanis came under attack from the New Republic, Rax ordered Grand Admiral Rae Sloane to take Brendol and his son off planet.
It would be during this event that Rax would speak the words Armitage needed to hear: “It will be your life's work to take children like these savages and hammer their malleable minds into whatever shape you so require. They will be tools built for the work at hand. This is my gift to you, boy. One day your father will die. One day soon, I fear. And you will take his place.”
5. His Child Soldier Program Is Superior To His Father's
Grand Admiral Sloane would kill Gallius Rax during the Battle of Jakku and then make a pact with Armitage, vowing to watch over him and protect him. Once Brendol was out of the picture, Hux became more sinister and evil than ever before.
Using terror and technology, he built a program superior to his father's. The children in his program were put through rigorous training tests and realistic simulations, ensuring only the strongest survived while the weak quietly disappeared forever.
Built upon the foundation of ideas used at Arkanis Academy, Armitage Hux created a loyal and deadly army that served him without question.
These actions caught the eye of Supreme Leader Snoke who promoted him to General of Starkiller Base. This is why Finn turning on the First Order came as such a shock to Kylo Ren, Hux, and Phasma.
4. He Wants To Become The Next Tarkin And More
While there isn’t much recorded about Hux’s thoughts on Tarkin, it’s clear by his actions and chosen path that he looks up to the old Grand Moff.
However, as sinister as General Hux has become, he’s still no Tarkin — yet. This was made abundantly clear during the Force Awakens when Hux abandons his post as general and runs to Snoke seeking advice on what to do.
While it may have cost Grand Moff Tarkin his life, he never abandoned his post on the Death Star. Tarkin knew about the threat but he didn’t run to protect his hide, he went down with his ship as any leader should do.
Hux did the opposite and it should be interesting to see how he recovers from this embarrassing incident in The Last Jedi.
3. He Thinks He’s Invincible
Armitage’s pride makes him think he’s invincible, but the ending to Force Awakens proved his counter measures aren’t are strong as he thinks they are.
However, until that point, everything he had done went his way. For instance, the situation with Cardinal and the murder of his father. When Cardinal approached Hux with what he thought would do Phasma in, the slick Armitage just laughed in his face.
He’s a strategist, and a darn good one. However, he’ll never be top dog if he continues to grow cocky. This is what happened with Starkiller Base. Hux assumed his plans for defense were fool proof.
Didn’t he study what happened to the last two Death stars? Only a fool would think something that massive wouldn’t have a weak spot that needed to be protected at all times.
2. He Views All Force Wielders As A Threat
Armitage Hux grew up in a culture and in a family where the Jedi were scorned and looked upon as traitors to the galaxy. In some circles it can also be assumed that Darth Vader was seen as simply a tool, not fully grasping the power of the Dark Side or the Sith.
As far as Hux is concerned, anyone who is force sensitive is a threat against him and everything he’s created. This includes Kylo Ren.
Which is why Hux pushed for the attack on Hosnian Prime. He was determined to show the galaxy that his weapon was far superior to any “magic” used by a force wielder or even an old Jedi like Luke Skywalker.
He simply doesn’t fully trust anyone who uses the force.
1. Abrams Failed To Make His Character Relatable
One of the biggest mistakes Abrams did in Force Awakens was the speech given by General Hux prior to testing out Starkiller Base’s new weapon of mass destruction.
Abrams said to Gleeson he wanted the scene to be over-the-top, which it was — but not in a relatable way. Hux went from a Tarkin lookalike to a child throwing a tantrum in 0.01 seconds.
This happened because Abrams failed to set the character General Hux up for that specific scene. Instead, it was all about a “wow” factor and less about development. This left audiences confused about Armitage Hux, specifically what he stood for and what drove him.
Hopefully, Rian Johnson spends more time filling in the blanks as to who General Armitage Hux is in The Last Jedi because his character is not one to overlook.
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Can you think of any other interesting facts about Star Wars' General Hux? Let us know in the comments!