The Rise of Skywalker: Who lived and who died?

With The Rise of Skywalker bringing the third Star Wars trilogy and the first saga to a close, characters were bound to perish. Who lived and who died?

Warning: This post contains spoilers for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. 

When a finale is as hyped up as Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, there are bound to be some major casualties over the course the film. And with this movie rounding out the current Star Wars trilogy and The Skywalker Saga as a whole, fans were expecting tragedy — though what we got was pretty mild considering.

Yes, there were a few major deaths during The Rise of Skywalker, but most of them were expected ones. There weren’t any losses that felt completely out of the blue, which could be seen as a win — or it could be seen as the movie playing it a bit too safe. (How amazing would it have been if they actually killed off Chewy?)

All of the trilogy’s main good guys survived the final film, with Rey, Finn, and Poe living to see their victory unfold — and probably to build the better world they’ve been working toward. Rose and Zorii Bliss also survived, though neither was given the screen time most expected. And Lando, Jannah, the rest of the named rebels, and all our favorite droids survived as well.

So, apart from countless nameless rebels and Stormtroopers, who actually died in The Rise of Skywalker?

C-3PO’s memory … sort of

After C-3PO’s statement in the trailer that he’s “looking at [his] friends one last time,” many fans predicted we’d see the end of the droid in some capacity. And to enable him to translate the language of the Sith, he does need to wipe his memory drive completely — something that feels like a death of sorts, given that he won’t remember any of his previous adventures or his friends.

Thankfully, however, C-3PO’s BFF comes to the rescue and restores part of his memories. R2D2 really is a champ. Still, it doesn’t seem all of C-3PO’s past has been returned to him. So, in a way, he died and was remade? We guess?

General Hux

General Hux was weary of Kylo Ren’s role as Supreme Leader in The Last Jedi, and his hatred for the Sith only grew during this film. He even goes as far as to help the rebels, something that gets him killed by General Pryde. To be fair, it was a bit obvious he’d let the resistance fighters go. Perhaps he should have boarded the ship with them instead of flaunting the hole in his leg…

Leia Organa

With Luke Skywalker and Han Solo gone, it was only a matter of time until Leia Organa also passed on — really, it was the only way they could end her character’s arc, even if Carrie Fisher hadn’t died. Thankfully, though, Leia’s storyline ends with her using the last of her life to save her son and Rey. And really, what better way could she have gone?

Princess — no, General — Leia got to go down fighting for everything she’s stood for and believed in throughout The Skywalker Saga. For that reason, her death was probably the most impactful. It honored hers and Carrie’s legacy.

Kylo Ren

Kylo Ren dies about midway through the film, metaphorically more than physically. After Rey puts a lightsaber through him — and then heals him, deciding to spare him instead — he’s forced to face the fact that Ben Solo is still inside of him, and begging to come out.

Kylo then has a conversation with his father — yes, we get one more glimpse of Han, though it appears to all be in Kylo’s head — where Han insists that he can return to the boy he was. He then declares Kylo Ren is dead, and from that point onward, it seems to be the case. Looks like Ben Solo got his redemption arc after all.

Ben Solo

When Emperor Palpatine gains back his power, he tosses Ben Solo off of a ledge, something we now know doesn’t equal death in the Star Wars universe. And once Rey sacrifices herself to defeat Palpatine, Ben climbs back up that ledge and uses what’s left of his own Force powers to bring her back to life.

And OK, it’s a bit much. But it’s a big moment for his character, and it’s his last stand against the Empire that had corrupted him for so long. It is one of the film’s saddest and most meaningful deaths. Unfortunately, it gets a little lost in all the kissing.

Emperor Palpatine (We hope)

During her final confrontation with Emperor Palpatine, Rey uses everything she has to defeat the Sith Lord once and for all. It’s a huge moment that shows all of the Jedi triumphing over all of the Sith, and it results in Palpatine being blown to bits. So, we can safely assume that the big bad of The Skywalker Saga is dead now. Right?

(We hope so. He’d better not be returning for any new trilogies any time soon.)

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is playing in theaters now.