Among the new Star Wars characters who are being introduced in The Rise of Skywalker is Richard E. Grant’s Allegiant General Pryde, one of The First Order’s highest-ranking officers. Grant hasn’t been shy about showing his Star Wars fandom and appreciation for getting to participate in the final chapter of the Skywalker Saga, and he’s now teasing that there’s a big character twist in the movie that shines brightly.
When asked what aspect of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will surprise viewers the most, Richard E. Grant responded:
The big character plot twist that I had no idea would be coming. It made total emotional sense and story sense and I thought that was really smart. And I think that's an incredible thing to take something that began with the first movie in 1977 and nine movies later reach a conclusion/resolution.
It’s unclear if Richard E. Grant is saying that this character twist ties back to the movie that started it all, A New Hope, or if he’s just referring to the Skywalker Saga coming to a close after 42 years. Either way, the actor said the twist took him by surprise, but he feels it was a logical thing to include in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Thankfully, we don’t have to wait much longer to learn what he’s talking about.
Richard E. Grant’s comment is so vague that it’s impossible to predict who he’s talking about. Still, it’s worth acknowledging that when it comes to character twists in the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, Rey is arguably the most popular topic of conversation. Despite Kylo Ren telling Rey in The Last Jedi that her parents were nobodies, there’s still speculation that The Rise of Skywalker will somehow retcon this and reveal that her parents are either characters we’ve previously met or at least connected to them.
Not only will Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker definitively answer the ‘Who are Rey’s parents?’ question, writer Chris Terrio also confirmed that we’ll learn the entire deal concerning Rey herself. But again, there’s no guarantee that Rey is who Richard E. Grant is talking about. With a cast as big as The Rise of Skywalker’s, it could cover nearly everyone, though being someone gifted with the Force certainly improves the odds.
As far as his feelings about Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker as a whole are concerned, Richard E. Grant made it clear on social media recently that he enjoyed it (to put it lightly), but he also acknowledged in his conversation with Yahoo that there are enormous expectations when it comes to closing this proverbial book. As he put it:
It runs the risk of the Game of Thrones syndrome, where there's no way you can please all the people all the time, because people are so emotionally invested in this story. The movie that they're going to see may not be the movie they have in their heads to see. But for a four decade-long fan as I am, I thought it pulled off that feat incredibly.
With less than two weeks to go until Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker comes out, there are still plenty of mysteries weighing on fans’ minds, including how Allegiant General Pryde factors into the equation. While Richard E. Grant did not provide any specific details about his character, he did mention that Pryde will be present in some of the movie’s final scenes.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker hits theaters on December 20. If you’re already thinking about what’s heading to the silver screen next year, mark your calendar accordingly with our 2020 release schedule.
