Kylo Ren, a key antagonist in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, strived to become the new Darth Vader, but he couldn’t succeed in this endeavor for a variety of reasons. Darth Vader is as famous within the Star Wars canon universe as he is in real-world pop culture. Vader was a lethal Sith Lord and the second in command of Star Wars' Galactic Empire, serving as the regime’s public face more so than his master, Emperor Palpatine. Beneath his iconic mask, however, was a broken man who’d sacrificed everything he once stood for out of desperation to save a loved one, only for the dark side to take that from him too. Ben Solo, upon falling to the dark side, wished to finish what his grandfather, Vader, started.
Ben Solo became Kylo Ren upon believing that his Uncle, Luke Skywalker, tried to kill him in his sleep. Ben fled the Jedi and joined the marauding dark side religion, the Knights of Ren, eventually usurping their leader and becoming Kylo Ren. Kylo Ren often spoke to what he believed to be the spirit of his grandfather’s Sith identity, but Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker reveals that he was truly hearing the corrupting voice of Palpatine, who successfully turned Ben as he did Anakin Skywalker decades ago.
Kylo’s goal of being the new Darth Vader was also his greatest insecurity. When Rey read Kylo’s mind in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, she learned that the thought of not matching Vader’s strength was Kylo’s greatest fear. Kylo’s dark side master, Snoke, once believed Kylo to be capable of achieving this goal, and his doubts about this motivated Kylo to assassinate and betray the Supreme Leader. Ultimately, Kylo couldn’t be the new Vader for the simple fact that he wanted to be Vader, whereas Vader resigned himself to his new identity. Moreover, Darth Vader was one of the last Sith Lords of Darth Bane’s lineage, while Kylo was never a member of the Sith Order, even unofficially.
Anakin Skywalker felt held back by the ways of the Jedi and their faith in the Force, harnessing the corrosive powers of the dark side and joining the Sith out of desperation to save his wife. As with all dark side users, Sith or otherwise, Anakin sacrificed his values and murdered numerous people to grow in power, but his wife ultimately died anyway. This left Anakin, now Darth Vader, with nothing but his power, rage, and torment. As stated in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Kylo Ren turned to the dark side well before his incident with Luke, gradually becoming enamored with its power, thanks to Palpatine and Snoke. Anakin Skywalker hated being Darth Vader but felt that he had nothing left but his new identity. Kylo Ren wanted to be the next Darth Vader, fundamentally misunderstanding his grandfather.
Another key reason why Kylo would never be the next Vader was that Kylo was a Knight of Ren, not a Sith. While both religions used the dark side, and red-bladed lightsabers, the two had different philosophies. The Sith believed that the dark side would set them free, and it was for them to dominate, along with the galaxy. The Knights of Ren were far less ambitious, accepting whatever “gifts” that the dark sider gave them and stalking across the galaxy more passively, stealing and murdering when they please.
Ultimately, Kylo Ren’s resolution to finish what Vader started was flawed. Darth Vader was always a pawn of Palpatine so his goals were simply extensions of his master’s. Kylo ascended to Supreme Leader of the First Order and followed his path by the end of the Star Wars sequel trilogy. By branching off from his grandfather’s path, misunderstanding his motivation, and being a Knight of Ren, Kylo ensured that he’d never be the new Darth Vader.
