There are only a few days left before the world is treated to Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Critics are raving about the movie on social media and are understandably avoiding spoilery language like it's the sands of Tatooine (it's rough and coarse and it gets everywhere). That means most fans will have to wait to learn the possible answer to Rey's parentage, the single biggest mystery in Star Wars right now. Internet theorists have been trying to crack this nut for two years now, with tons of theories circulated about Rey's origins. There's a strong possibility that the answer will finally be revealed in The Last Jedi, so let's take stock and look at all the possible answers.
I don't think that Rey (Daisy Ridley) needs to be connected to a past character for her origin to be important, but part of the fun of fan theories are the dots (no matter how thin) that people connect to reach their conclusions. Some make a lot of sense. Others not so much. These are all the biggest theories about Rey's parents that you need to know before seeing Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
Just for the sake of caution, I'm throwing up a SPOILER WARNING just in case any of these actually ends up being true. At the moment, these are just theories.
She's Luke Skywalker's Daughter
The single most obvious and strongest theory is that Rey is the daughter of Luke Skywalker. Rey's connection to his lightsaber, her exile on a desert planet, her natural skills as a pilot, and her strong connection to the Force all mirror Luke pretty closely. It's entirely plausible that Luke fathered a child in the gap between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, and then hid that child on Jakku to keep her safe from his enemies. However, this is all fairly predictable, and The Last Jedi is apparently filled with surprises. Plus, we don't exactly have much of an emotional connection to Luke impregnating a character we've never seen or met.
She's Related To Obi-Wan Kenobi
Another powerful and popular contender is that Rey isn't a Skywalker, but a Kenobi. The popular version is that Obi-Wan Kenobi is Rey's grandfather after he fathered a child at some point in the franchise -- most likely in the gap before A New Hope. While Rey Kenobi does roll right off the tongue and the poetry of Luke now training the granddaughter of his mentor is nice, there's not a whole lot of actual evidence backing this up, other than them both being British. It's also hard to imagine Obi-Wan breaking his Jedi vows after criticizing Anakin for the same thing, but spending enough time alone in a desert will change a guy, I guess.
She's Related To Han Solo And Leia Organa
Keeping with the trend that Rey is the descendant of a hero character, one theory believes that Rey is the second child of Han and Leia, thus making her the sister of Kylo Ren. After their firstborn went crazy and murdered Luke's Jedi students, the Solos may have taken a young and Force-sensitive Rey to Jakku to protect her from her brother and Snoke. In The Force Awakens, Han seemed to know more about Rey than he was letting on, but that doesn't necessarily make him her father. If she is their daughter, neither Han nor Leia have the right reactions to meeting Rey. You would think they would have a bigger emotional response to finding their daughter again, but the two of them are very much focused on Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) during the movie.
Snoke Created Her
People are desperate to figure out who Snoke is and some are trying to draw connections between him and Rey. The Last Jedi trailers give the impression that Snoke has an interest in Rey. Some think that Snoke created Rey using the Force, while others think that she is his daughter who was kidnapped by Han and Leia as revenge for turning Ben Solo to the dark side. An eye for an eye as it were, but there's no real evidence backing any of this up. Snoke is a total mystery, so anything goes for him at the moment, but the chances of being directly related to Rey fell pretty slim.
She's A Relative Of Palpatine
Will no one let this poor dark lord rest in peace? Despite meeting a pretty conclusive end after exploding, people like to keep Emperor Palpatine involved in the conversation. Palpatine never had any family that we know of, but people are drawing comparisons between him and Rey, citing their fighting style, rage, Britishness, and that their theme songs sound similar. There is some nice irony in the idea of a good Palpatine (Rey) battling an evil Skywalker (Kylo Ren), but it feels like The Emperor's story is pretty much finished. Let another villain take the spotlight.
She's A Force Baby
One theory about Rey's parents decides to completely ditch the parents. Anakin Skywalker has no father. He was literally born from Sith Lord Darth Plagueis using the Force to create human life. This is arguably what makes him so naturally powerful. Rey is also strong in the Force, defeating a trained Force-user without having trained a day in her life. Thus, Rey could be born of the Force just like Anakin, with Snoke as a possible "father." It makes sense on paper, but it also makes Anakin's origin less unique in the process.
She's Anakin Skywalker Reincarnated
This theory is really reaching for the stars. It claims that Anakin Skywalker's spirit was resurrected as Rey so that she could bring balance to the Force after throwing it into disarray in her previous life. It would perhaps explain why she's already such a natural with the Force, and why she feels such a connection to Anakin's original lightsaber. It's also really silly, and a difficult pill to swallow. Force ghosts are one thing, but as far as the movies go, there's really no precedence for something like this. Still, it might be worth it just see Kylo Ren lose his shit meeting his grandfather in person. Another version of this theory claims that Rey is the chosen one, who is just one person that keeps getting reincarnated as a different being whenever the Force is unbalanced.
Two Random Unnamed Jedi Characters
Rather than have Rey's parents end up being characters audiences are familiar with, there's always the chance that Rey's parents are entirely new to Star Wars. There's an argument to be made that Rey doesn't need to be tied to another character to explain her strengths, and that doesn't mean that her origins aren't important. It just means it won't be what people expect. Rey's parents could just be space bums who abandoned their daughter, but one popular theory is that she's the daughter of two of Luke's former students at the Jedi Academy who were killed by the Knights of Ren. Another one is that she's the daughter of a Jedi and a Sith. How effective this origin will be, largely depends on the context of The Last Jedi.
Rey Is A Clone Of Luke Skywalker
The Force Awakens reintroduced Luke's original lightsaber, last seen plummeting to the depths of Bespin with Luke's severed hand. The weapon ended up with Maz Kanata with some mystery as to how she got the saber. But where's the hand? One possible answer is that someone took Luke's hand and used the genetic material to make a Skywalker clone -- Rey.Star Wars is no stranger to clones, the Republic having built an entire army of them. The clone theory would explain Rey's visions (perhaps it's no coincidence she saw the Bespin fight between Luke and Vader), though, the motives behind creating a clone of Luke remain murky. It's worth noting that The Force Awakens was reportedly going to feature Luke's severed hand in some way, originally. It's a wild idea and certainly not what most people would expect. Will it turn out to be true? We'll know on December 15.
