Cantina Talk: Rey Is Not Who You Think She Is

We're headed into the one-month countdown for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, but (as of this writing, at least) things are surprisingly quiet on the Star Wars front. Is this the calm before the storm of a last minute promotional blitz for Rogue—or even a glimpse of footage from Star Wars: Episode VIII? Your guess is as good as ours, but for now, let's enjoy the silence.

Source: The man behind Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Mr. J.J. Abrams
Probability of Accuracy: If he wouldn't know, who would?
The Real Deal: Those who believed that Rey and Kylo Ren had somehow known each other earlier in their lives before coming face-to-face in last year's Star Wars: The Force Awakens, we have some bad news for you: J.J. Abrams' director's commentary on the new TFA home release proves you wrong. "One of the new relationships that we were focusing on was between Kylo Ren and Rey. They’ve never met but he’s heard of this girl," Abrams says in that commentary. And before that last line is used as an excuse to suggest a prior relationship of sorts, an earlier scene is identified by Abrams' commentary as "the moment, of course, where Kylo Ren learns about Rey." So now you have it; there is apparently no prior connection to Rey and the son of Princess Leia and Han Solo whatsoever. At all. Unless that gets retconned later.

Source: Rey herself, Daisy Ridley
Probability of Accuracy: Theoretically, it's just an opinion, so "accuracy" is a tough thing to apply to it. But she's right.
The Real Deal: And speaking of Rey, Daisy Ridley took to the Happy Sad Confused podcast to respond to fan criticism of the character, specifically the complaint that she was just a "Mary Sue" that was too good at everything for plot purposes. "The Mary Sue thing in itself is sexist because it’s the name of a woman," Ridley explained. "Everyone was saying that Luke had the exact same [capabilities]. I think Rey is incredibly vulnerable, and nothing she’s doing is for the greater good... She’s just doing what she thinks is the right thing. And she doesn’t want to do some of it, but she feels compelled to do it. So for me, I was just confused [by the criticism]." In a separate interview, Ridley also talked about the likelihood of more Rey merchandise to accompany Episode VIII. "Interestingly, I had a meeting yesterday about merchandise and what’s happening going forward, so I had a lot of questions that were answered and some, you know, issues," she teased. "Moving forward I think what they’re planning—I’ve been told what the plan is for next year and it’s really cool, really exciting."

Source: Online speculation fueled by spying on sets
Probability of Accuracy: Let's say "tenuous at best."
The Real Deal: A strange rumor came from the Making Star Wars fan site, which described Luke Skywalker's costume from the set of Episode VIII and, in doing so, made a couple of speculative comments about what it might mean for Luke in the actual movie. The costume is described as "just filthy most of the time," and likened to being "like Yoda on Dagobah"—and notably missing a lightsaber, or even a belt to attach one to. Could Luke have transcended using the Jedi's favored weapon? (He does, apparently, carry "either a thin spear, thin walking stick, or a piece of junk," so take that as you will.) What lies ahead for Darth Vader Jr.? Suddenly, December 2017 feels so far away...

Source: Of all things, a Gillette ad campaign
Probability of Accuracy: It does have the Lucasfilm seal of approval.
The Real Deal: The idea of a cross promotion between Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Gillette might seem unusual and potentially pointless. (When you think Star Wars, you don't immediately think "Ah, yes, razors," let's be honest.) However, the trailer announcing the launch of the Every Story Has a Face campaign is... well, kind of wonderful:

Given that he'll almost certainly get killed as soon as that battle actually starts, there's a surprising amount of poignancy to be found there. Oh, poor Rebel soldier. It's not going to end well. OK, ultimately it will, but be real: even The Force Awakens kind of dampens the happy ending of Return of the Jedi somewhat.

Source: *Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'*s soundtrack composer
Probability of Accuracy: Pretty damn accurate, considering.
The Real Deal: Actually, where is the next Star Wars movie in the post-production process right now? If only Michael Giacchino (who's scoring Rogue One: A Star Wars Story even as we speak) was updating his Instragram feed with shots from the soundtrack recording. Oh, wait, he is.

He's a nerd, sure, but anyone who pretends they aren't insanely jealous right now is lying.