Warning. This article contains mild spoilers for Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker.
JJ Abrams' final chapter in the Star Wars Skywalker saga came with many, many references to the earlier movies – it was somewhat of a nostalgia marathon in parts.
Yet another link has been found in the movie's opening scene – Kylo Ren visits a forest bathed in red light to search for a "wayfinder" that will help him locate the Sith planet of Exegol. What's interesting here is that this forest is on the lava planet Mustafar.
A legendary location across multiple Star Wars movies, Mustafar was the place where Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi had their final battle before the former's transformation into Darth Vader in Revenge of the Sith.
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Also, in Rogue One, Darth Vader's towering black castle was on Mustafar as well – giving this lava planet lots of significance for Kylo Ren and his quest.
What to Read Next
This link between Rise of Skywalker and the 1999-2005 trilogy has been confirmed by new book Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: The Visual Dictionary, by Pablo Hidalgo.
The dictionary confirms the parallel between Kylo Ren and Darth Vader's stories, as it describes Ren's "swath of destruction through the Alazmec, who attempt to block his path to Vader's castle — or rather, its crumbling ruins".
It continues: "[He] enters the castle grounds with purpose, and finds an ark containing an artifact that will lead him to answers."
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is out now.
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