Spoilers ahead…
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker hit theatres last week to incredibly mixed reviews. It’s a film so obsessed with the past, so obsessed with Easter eggs and winking at the Star Wars diehards, that it lets story and structure fall by the wayside. And this is coming from a Star Wars diehard. However, one Easter egg that informed the story wonderfully comes right at the very end.
It’s the climactic battle sequence between Rey and her grandpa Palpatine. Palpatine is whooping ass. Force lightning galore. Ben Solo is out, Palpatine chucked him down a hole. Rey is out cold too. When all hope is seemingly lost, Rey hears a bunch of voices telling her to rise. The voices of legendary Jedi from the past, all of whom encourage her and give her strength. It’s a powerful moment, especially if you recognise the voices.
But for those of you who did not recognise the voices, or only recognised some of them, don’t worry! We’ve got the complete list for you. Many of them are from the main saga films, but in a rare move, Lucasfilm actually decided to reward the people who indulge in the extended canon as well, mainly the animated series.
- Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen)
- Luminara Unduli (Olivia d’Abo) — We’ve seen her character briefly in Star Wars: Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, played by different actresses respectively. However, the character gained popularity in the Clone Wars animated series where she’s voiced by Olivia d’Abo.
- Ahsoka Tano (Ashley Eckstein) — Easily the most intriguing female character in all of Star Wars, at least to this writer, Ahsoka Tano, a former Padawan of Anakin Skywalker, gained massive prominence and popularity through the Clone Wars and Star Wars: Rebels animated series.
- Aayla Secura (Jennifer Hale) — Now, this is a huge deep cut. I couldn’t recognise the voice even after a second viewing and needed to pay attention to the credits to figure it out. Much like Luminara, Aayla also was originally introduced in the prequels (played by Amy Allen) but became more popular in the Clone Wars animated series.
- Mace Windu (Samuel L Jackson)
- Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor and an audio clip of the late Alec Guinness).
- Yoda (Frank Oz)
- Adi Gallia (Angelique Perrin) – Another deep cut. Adi Gallia appeared in The Phantom Menace before gaining popularity in Clone Wars.
- Kanan Jarrus (Freddie Prince Jr.) – One of my favourite Jedi in all of Star Wars. Kanan is a character from Star Wars: Rebels animated series.
- Qui-Gon Jin (Liam Neeson)
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is currently playing in cinemas.
