Star Wars: The Last Jedi — What is the Chosen One?

Before Star Wars: The Last Jedi, let’s look at what the Chosen One is.

“You were the Chosen One,” Obi-Wan cried out in Star Wars III — Revenge of the Sith as he stared down at his friend’s broken body. “It was said that you would destroy the Sith, not join them!”

Who can forget that emotional moment from Revenge of the Sith? The idea of the Chosen One was introduced in George Lucas’s Prequel Trilogy. Although he never quite explained what it meant, it became a central theme in his story. According to Mark Hamill, the idea is set to return in The Last Jedi.

Luke’s expectations for Ben Solo and Rey

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Hamill revealed that Luke originally thought his nephew was the Chosen One.

"“He made a huge mistake in thinking that his nephew was the chosen one, so he invested everything he had in Kylo, much like Obi-Wan did with my character,” Hamill says. “And he is betrayed, with tragic consequences. Luke feels responsible for that.”"

We can assume that mistake informs his attitude towards Rey. Tellingly, the second trailer revealed Luke admitting he’s sensed power like Rey’s once before. It didn’t frighten him the first time, and he learned to fear it the hard way. Now, he’s afraid, terrified that he is about to unleash another dark side being upon the galaxy.

Anakin Skywalker was the first Chosen One in the Saga. [Credit: Lucasfilm]

But what is the Chosen One?

Star Wars fans hadn’t really expected the franchise to return to the concept of the Chosen One. After all, that was Anakin Skywalker, the man destined to bring balance to the Force. George Lucas never quite defined what that meant, but he compared the idea of “balance” to the concept of yin and yang. If that’s the case, the Chosen One is the being who keeps light and dark in their place.

The closest we ever came to a definition of the Chosen One was in The Clone Wars. The episode “Overlords” saw Anakin taken to the strange world of Mordis. There, Father asked him to give his life keeping his Son (darkness) and Daughter (light) in balance, for the sake of the galaxy. Anakin failed to do so, with tragic consequences. The episode was clearly intended as a commentary on Anakin’s role in the galaxy.

The Messianic imagery of the Chosen One

We were introduced to the idea of the Chosen One in The Phantom Menace. There, Qui-Gon came to believe Anakin to be the Chosen One for two reasons. The first was his unique power, with a midichlorian count beyond even that of Master Yoda. the second was because his mother claimed Anakin had no father. His was a virgin birth, immediately giving us the sense that the Chosen One was the Jedi’s Messiah figure. Interestingly, the very term “Chosen One” drifts near to the Hebrew root of the word Messiah. The Messiah is the “Chosen / Anointed” King.

Of course, the reality is that Lucas was deliberately subverting this idea. Where the Messiah is God’s “servant” on Earth, the Chosen One exists to bring both light and darkness into balance. That’s not to suggest the Jedi actually understood that, of course. They assumed that Anakin’s destiny was to “destroy” the Sith, and tried to encourage him to resist the darkness. In reality, he needed to find the point of balance.

The balance has been lost once again

The “Overlords” episode drops an intriguing hint that each generation must have its own Chosen One. After all, balance is a state of being, a constant reality rather than a one-off event. Greg Rucka’s novel Guardians of the Whills suggested the same. It suggested that the balance of the Force is “the moment between breaths.”

If that’s the case, the galaxy needs a new Chosen One. Chuck Wendig’s novel Aftermath: Empire’s End suggested that Snoke believed Ben Solo to be that being. In a neat subversion of the Messianic imagery, he described Snoke’s dark side presence watching over Ben while he was still in his mother’s womb. It’s deliberately reminiscent of the prophet Jeremiah, to whom God said:

"“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.”"

But now both Luke and Snoke sense another. Andy Serkis has told Entertainment Weekly that the Supreme Leader is dissatisfied with Kylo Ren. The youth may have turned to the dark side, but the light still calls to him. Snoke is growing angry with the youth, and his wandering eyes have turned to Rey.

Is it actually possible we’ll see two Chosen Ones? Ben Solo / Kylo Ren is a dark sider drawn to the light, while Rey appears to be a light sider drawn to the dark. Little wonder the second trailer ended with Kylo Ren offering Rey his hand, and the two entering a mysterious alliance.

Next: 50 greatest super heroes in comic book history

Whatever the truth may be, one thing’s for sure. Possibly the most important Prequel concept is returning to the Star Wars Saga, and as a result the narrative threads of the entire franchise are about to come full circle.

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