A mysterious new character was revealed in the reveal trailer for Star Wars Jedi: Survivor floating in a bacta tank, and there has been some speculation that it could be Cal Kestis' clone. There have been a number of theories about the character floating in the bacta tank, ranging from them being a survivor of Order 66 who was rescued and then forgotten about, to an evil from a different age Cal has mistakenly woken up. Respawn is keeping details surrounding the sequel's story under wraps for now, but the studio has confirmed that Jedi: Survivor will be darker than Fallen Order.
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order - the first game in Respawn's Jedi series - followed a young Jedi named Cal Kestis as he sought to reclaim a lost Holocron and rebuild the Jedi Order. Along the way, he gathered a new crew of companions and learned that the best way to rebuild the Order was to let fate take its course. The sequel, Jedi: Survivor, picks up five years after these events in 9 BBY, the same year Lucasfilm's Obi-Wan Kenobi series takes place. While not much is known, it looks like Cal is separated from both his friends and his lightsaber. In the announcement trailer for Star Wars Jedi: Survior, Cal finds what appears to be an abandoned lab with a bacta tank containing a mysterious individual. The individual looks vaguely like Cal Kestis, sparking some to theorize that Cal may be a clone of whoever is in the tank.
There is some merit to this theory. Cloning Force users is not a recent development in the Star Wars universe, and has been going on since the formative years of the franchise's old Legends continuity. It was a major plot point in Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2 and was more infamously prevalent in Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker. It has also been speculated that Starkiller could feature in Star Wars Jedi 2, so speculating that Cal may be a clone himself illustrates the hold that series continues to have on parts of the fandom. Either way, it's a possibility that can't be ruled out; The Force Unleashed has influenced aspects of the new Star Wars canon, and that could extend to Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.
What A Clone Cal Kestis Would Mean For Jedi: Survivor's Story
The consequences of Cal being a clone would obviously be significant. It would confirm that Force powers are genetically determined, which is itself a controversial topic in Star Wars. The Force is narratively presented as a cosmically neutral entity that comes to those fated to have it, which is why Star Wars is trying to make Midichlorians unimportant. It is much more powerful narratively to have who came from nothing can have great power. However, the clone reveal would undermine that. Cal is among the new Star Wars canon's most compelling figures, and having him gain his power from being a clone of some other important person would diminish his accomplishments and ability.
This theory is unlikely to be true, however. The only real evidence to support this theory is that the mystery man vaguely looks like Cal with long hair, which isn't a lot to go on. Additionally, making Cal a clone could be a bad move given the controversy surrounding The Rise of Skywalker's Palpatine retcons and the mixed response to Star Wars further explaining his return. The Force Unleashed 2 had cloned Force users and it ended up being a lackluster title in comparison to its predecessor. Introducing Force clones for a third time would be a mistake and, for that reason, it is unlikely that Cal will be revealed to be a clone of the figure in the bacta tank in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.