The Star Wars franchise is in a very exciting time right now. We're just months away from the release of J.J. Abrams' Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, which will end the nine-film Skywalker Saga that has been arriving in theaters for decades. Episode IX will have to wrap up both the current trilogy and the franchise as we know it, with a narrative that dates back to George Lucas' A New Hope. And now we've got a fresh look at one of the new trio of heroes: John Boyega's Finn.
John Boyega made his debut in The Force Awakens, as a stormtrooper who decides to rebel after seeing the First Order's brutality firsthand. The Last Jedi continued his story, and saw him take more responsibility as a member of The Resistance. He's shown to be rocking some new duds and hair in The Rise of Skywalker trailers, and Boyega shared a new glimpse at Finn in action. Check it out below.
Why so serious, Finn? The stakes have been teased to be high for The Resistance in The Rise of Skywalker, and Finn's expression seems to confirm these. He's on a mysterious mission in a dry climate planet, and thing don't appear to be going well. But we'll just have to wait to see exactly what's happening in this scene.
This new image comes to us from John Boyega's personal Twitter account. In the Rise of Skywalker still, we see Finn rocking his new costume. There's a time jump in between Episode IX and The Last Jedi, which is likely when the former Stormtrooper will develop his own sense of style. He's got his own signature Star Wars vest, and has grown out his hair. What's more, you can see the character's sidearm for Episode IX, a standard Glie-44 blaster pistol.
Some fans are eager to see if Finn manages to take up a lightsaber again sometime during the course of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. He famously took up Luke's lightsaber in The Force Awakens, battling an armored (and iconic) Stormtrooper in the process. But Rey and the blade were on their own mission during The Rise of Skywalker, so he didn't get the chance to do this again. It's rare for a non-Force sensitive character to wield the iconic weapon, and fans are hoping it might happen again for John Boyega's signature character.
Related: Should Star Wars Let Finn Become A Jedi?
I'm eager to see how Finn's story progresses in The Rise of Skywalker, as there are a ton of narrative threads to pull from. For one, there's a love triangle at play between he, Rey, and Kelly Marie Tran's Rose Tico. While Finn was smitten with Daisy Ridley's Jedi in The Force Awakens, they didn't get to interact much in the following movie. What's more, Rose planted a kiss on the former Stormtrooper during the battle on Crait.
The Rise of Skywalker will bring the starring cast together, as they go on one more mission for the galaxy's fate. This will unite the likes of Rey, Finn, Poe, and even C-3PO. What that mission is remains a mystery, because we all know how the Star Wars franchise values its secrets. Luckily, the wait is nearly over.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will hit theaters on December 20th. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
