Rey's lineage was the subject of much speculation in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, but what if the theory of her being Luke Skywalker’s daughter was true? This would fundamentally change Rey’s relationship with Luke in Star Wars: The Last Jedi and would certainly have significant repercussions in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Luke’s questionable characterization in The Last Jedi, seen as inconsistent with the original trilogy, would be altered by this new context, and it’s easy to imagine that the movie would have a different resolution for the Jedi Master.
Although the mystery of Rey’s parentage was a major component of the Star Wars sequel films, the franchise and its fandom became too occupied with the question, and thus it became easy to lose sight of what makes her interesting on her own merits. This mystery was especially prevalent in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, but The Last Jedi overcorrected it by claiming Rey is not related to any established original trilogy Star Wars characters. Then The Rise of Skywalker revealed, in an out-of-left-field retcon, that Rey is the granddaughter of Emperor Palpatine.
Rey’s heritage is certainly an interesting facet of her character, but the first two Star Wars sequel films put far too much focus on it, either to emphasize its importance or to render it meaningless. Ultimately, whomever Rey is related to ought to have been used as a vessel to enrich her characterization and create compelling character dynamics. Establishing Rey as related to Luke Skywalker or Emperor Palpatine — or nobody — shouldn’t be why she’s a compelling character, but if she was the daughter of the Star Wars character that she has the most in common with, here’s how the Star Wars sequel trilogy would have been different.
Who Would Be Rey's Mother?
Revealing Rey to be Luke Skywalker’s daughter raises another interesting question: Who is Rey’s mother? The most likely answer would be a reimagined version of Mara Jade, the adopted daughter of Emperor Palpatine in the Star Wars Legends continuity. A new version of Mara Jade would, interestingly, allow Rey to retain a degree of connection to Palpatine as well as promise fascinating stories for Luke Skywalker in the post-2014 canon universe. Luke might have met and fallen in love with Mara in a re-imagined version of the Thrawn Trilogy and Hand of Thrawn duology, setting up potential spinoff material in canon.
Would Luke Recognize Rey?
If Rey was left on Jakku as a young child, Luke Skywalker might not recognize his young adult daughter at first on Ahch-To. Moreover, Luke would have presumably cut himself off from the Force by the time Rey appears, so he wouldn’t feel a connection to her immediately. Their relationship might be similar throughout this alternate version of The Last Jedi until Luke reconnects with the Force, likely leading him to recognize his daughter and piece together what must have happened to her, in addition to explaining the origin of Kylo Ren.
Rey's New Abandonment Story
In this new Star Wars timeline, Rey would still be left on Jakku for her protection, in this case, likely to keep her safe from Kylo Ren and his Knights of Ren after the fall of Luke’s generation of Jedi. Perhaps Luke and Mara took Rey to Jakku to hide her, but an incident left Mara dead and Rey presumed dead. This would explain why Luke isn’t searching for her and partially why he wouldn’t recognize her at first. Luke would believe his daughter to be dead, which would further contribute to his despair during his self-imposed exile.
Luke's Exile To Ahch-To Becomes Far Darker
The Last Jedi’s handling of Luke Skywalker would remain controversial, as Luke, who is defined by his feelings for his friends and family as well as his goal of protecting the people of the galaxy, would still abandon them all after creating their greatest threat yet. Despite this, the combined loss of his wife, presumed loss of his daughter, and the corruption of his nephew would make his choice to exile himself seem slightly closer to believable. Even with all the damage he’d have done to his own family, it’d still be inconsistent with Luke’s character trajectory to have him abandon all attempts to thwart the First Order’s conquests.
Luke Being A Father Would Change The Jedi Order
Having Luke marry and become a father is not only in-character, but also strongly implies that he’s taken action to improve the Jedi Order, something that the Star Wars sequel trilogy canonically establishes is not the case. The old Jedi Order’s philosophies were extremely flawed and a contributing factor to the rise of the Galactic Empire, so eliminating restrictive practices would be an in-character step for Luke in his efforts to improve the Jedi and their ability to protect the galaxy. Furthermore, Luke rejected the old Jedi philosophies in Return of the Jedi, so it would make sense for him to rebuild a better Jedi Order based on actions that helped him redeem Darth Vader.
Would Reuniting With Rey Change Luke's Last Jedi Story?
Luke’s reunion with Rey would likely accelerate Luke’s return to active heroism, as the discovery of his daughter’s survival would significantly reduce his inner turmoil over his failures. It’s fair to assume that Luke might not only give Rey legitimate training courses but also accompany her in an attempt to redeem Kylo Ren and defeat Snoke. The First Order would be all too eager to accept the surrender of both Rey and Luke Skywalker.
Luke Might've Survived The Last Jedi
The combined efforts of Rey and Luke could easily result in the death of Snoke and perhaps also the capture of Kylo Ren, allowing far more of the Resistance to survive. With the First Order lacking their dark side leadership, General Hux may take over the junta, and he’d be uninterested in saving Kylo Ren, which would be unintentionally advantageous to the Resistance. Leia, Rey, and Luke would try their best to bring Kylo Ren back from the dark side, and the First Order abandoning him to Resistance captivity may make him question his sinister choices.
How Would Rey & Luke's Return Affect Palpatine's Plans?
This alternate timeline would throw a wrench in many of the cloned and reborn Emperor Palpatine’s plans. Luke Skywalker was the one Jedi whom Palpatine feared, and his return combined with the training of his daughter and the potential redemption of Kylo Ren would be a major threat to Palpatine’s return. Palpatine may use Kylo’s rage at Hux’s betrayal as a way to keep him on the dark side, offering him leadership of the Sith Eternal and eventual Final Order, or he might try to turn Rey to the dark side. In either case, the combined forces of Leia, Luke Skywalker, and his daughter, Rey, would ensure Palpatine’s defeat in this alternate Star Wars sequel trilogy.