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Star Wars: The Force Awakens gave us a glimpse of the Knights of Ren, a group of dark-clad figures who are led by Ben Solo a.k.a. Kylo Ren. Though some people were expecting to see more of the Knights in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, they were (disappointingly) nowhere to be seen. So what gives?
Talking to Empire, director Rian Johnson explains their omission:
“We have a full movie already there literally was just not room for another element…I guess I could’ve used them in place of the Praetorian guards, but then it would feel like wasting them because all those guards had to die. And if Kylo had some kind of connection to them it would’ve added a complication that wouldn’t have helped the scene…truth is I just didn’t see a place for them in the movie.”
With the movie being jam-packed as it was, Johnson’s decision to have them absent seems like the right call. If they were the praetorian guards, then it would feel like the characters would be wasted if they all died. Plus, there would be Kylo’s connection to them.
With the Knights absent, and Kylo now the supreme leader, it opens up a whole new door of possibilities for J.J. Abrams’ Episode IX. I think Kylo can even set them up has his new personal guard and give them some kick-ass black armor. Maybe Kylo can pull a King Arthur and have the Knights be his small council of the First Order.
I’m just spit-balling here, but I would love to see the Knights come back in the final episode of the sequel trilogy.
Star Wars Episode IX is set to hit theaters December of 2019.
