A concept artist who worked on Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker has released unused concept art teasing a richer backstory for Keri Russell's Zorii Bliss. Bliss was a new character created for Episode IX, and Abrams cast his long-time actor and lucky charm Russell in the role. They have previously collaborated on several projects, most notably Felicity, which was Abrams' first hit TV show, and catapulted him into the spotlight, as well as Mission: Impossible III.
Bliss' role in Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker was relatively small but pivotal to the plot. Connected to Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) thanks to his spice-running past, she leads the core characters to Babu Frik (Shirley Henderson) while they're on Kijimi and also takes part in the final battle against the First Order. The costume she wears in the movie is a striking maroon outfit paired with a sleek gold helmet that hides her face and keeps her identity secret for the majority of the film.
Now, Calum Alexander Watt, a concept costume designer on Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker, has released previously unseen art of Bliss and her gang of Spice Runners. The artwork shows three Spice Runners wearing poncho-style coats and holding their weapons. They each have a helmet on, and ammo slung over their chests. Watt says the brief from Abrams was to make them a recognizable gang "along the lines of the Guavian Death gang from Ep.VII." You can see the full artwork below.
The artwork does make the spice runners into a cohesive unit, and the grey coats make more sense for a gang of secretive smugglers than the bright gold helmet and maroon outfit eventually worn by Bliss in the movie. But you can see why Abrams decided to go in another direction, given that in the final cut, Bliss' gang aren't seen much.
The final costume design used in the movie also makes more sense from an aesthetic perspective, as Bliss certainly stands out alongside the brown and grey coats worn by Dameron, Finn (John Boyega), Rey (Daisy Ridley) and rest of the cast. It is a pity, though, that audiences weren't given more insight into the gang, and Dameron's past associations with them.
Perhaps a flashback giving more context to Dameron and Bliss' relationship, but in a movie like Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker, which had to permanently tie up plot strands from eight previous films, you can understand why there wasn't more time given over to that particular backstory.
Source: Calum Alexander Watt/Twitter