Has Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker trailer already shown us Kylo Ren's redemption?

Star Wars fans are an easily divided crowd. One of many things they can't seem to agree on is whether or not Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will see Kylo Ren return to the light side of the force, reclaiming his name Ben Solo and completing his redemption arc.

Hints about this return to the light side come from all sorts of places. From previous films to children's web series, evidence can be sourced from all corners of the canon.

Yet many disagree with the redemption altogether. After all, this is the guy who gaslit Rey, murdered his father, nearly killed his mother, and delighted in thinking he'd slain his uncle. Not a nice bloke.

His internal conflict, and whether it's enough to outweigh his bad deeds and endear him to people, has been the subject of great debate. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will settle the debate, one way or another.

There may already be a hint as to what JJ Abrams has decided to do regarding Kylo Ren's arc, and it surfaced in The Rise of Skywalker trailer. Now, we must note this is speculation, albeit based on existing canon moments. It could all be just a coincidence.

The shot is brief but impactful. Rey and Kylo Ren are standing in the wreckage of the Death Star. Palpatine's throne sits behind Rey, with Rey and Kylo Ren locked in a stare across the room. Yep. That's it.

But here's why it matters.

Cast your mind back to Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. A similar redemption arc was achieved, and in literally the same room.

Darth Vader stood near the door into Palpatine's throne room, while the Emperor waxed poetical from his seat, occasionally getting up and wandering towards them. The scene was pivotal – not only because it's the one in which Palpatine tried to turn Luke to the dark side and failed, but because it's when Darth Vader redeemed himself before he died.

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The similarity in the positioning is obvious when you look at the two scenes side by side. Of course, this could just be to provoke excitement in fans. JJ Abrams had to know people would pick up on the similarity to Return of the Jedi and draw all sorts of conclusions.

However, trailers nowadays are full of red herrings, especially when it comes to films as hotly anticipated as Rise of Skywalker. Avengers: Infinity War gave us Hulk in battle when he was barely in the film. Thor: Ragnarok's trailer had its titular character with two eyes in scenes when he'd already lost one.

JJ Abrams could simply be engaging in a game of misdirection, making fans expect one thing only to give them another. But it wouldn't be the first time a Star Wars film repeated the beats of its predecessor. We won't know until Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker hits cinemas.

There are plenty of other plot possibilities to be gleaned from the trailer if Bendemption isn't something you care about. Yet it's hard to deny how charged every scene between Kylo Ren and Rey will be – whether he is redeemed or not.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker has a release date of Thursday, December 19 in the UK and Friday, December 20 in the US.

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Gabriella Geisinger

Gabriella Geisinger is a freelance film critic and journalist, with a focus on J-drama & film, and the Japanese production industry. She was previously Locations Editor at Screen International and Deputy Movies Editor at Digital Spy. Her writing can also befound in Curzon, 1883, and more. A born and raised New Yorker, she loves coffee and the colour black, obviously.