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12 Questions and Theories Fans Have About the Star Wars: Rogue One Trailer


When any trailer for an anticipated movie drops, fan theories and questions start rolling in by the boatload and the case is no different for Star Wars: Rogue One. The trailer shows us many intriguing characters we know nothing about and there’s a lot of ambiguous shots. We have so little information, but that doesn’t stop fans from speculating. So let’s take a look at some of the biggest questions the trailer for Star Wars: Rogue One creates and some of the potential answers fans have come up with.

What about you? What are your theories and questions about the Star Wars: Rogue One trailer? Be sure to tell us in the comments!

  1. Who is our Big Bad?

    In the trailer we see character played by Ben Mendelsohn. This older man is decked out in what seems to be an all-white Admiral of the Imperial Fleet Uniform. Many fans were quick to point out that this uniform is famously worn by a big antagonist in the Star Wars expanded universe, Grand Admiral Thrawn. For those who don’t know, Thrawn was the title character in Timothy Zahn’s 1991 Thrawn Trilogy of books. In a post-Return of the Jedi world, Thrawn commanded the remnants of the Empire’s forces and aimed to attack the New Republic.

    Obviously the guy we see in the trailer is not exactly like the Thrawn of the expanded universe. For one thing, Thrawn was a blue-skinned, red-eyed non-human. But it’s possible he might be a loose adaptation of the character or an antagonist that has elements of the character. That would be nice, since Thrawn was a pretty interesting antagonist- he wasn’t concerned with personal glory, he was very interested in art and rather than wastefully killing subordinates at the slightest failure, he tried to listen to them and encourage creative thinking. 

  2. Why are the Star Destroyers white?

    It had been noted that the Star Destroyers featured in the Rogue One trailer are pure white, rather than the gray they were in the original trilogy. One theory posited for why the Star Destroyers turned gray is very simple- they got dirty. Once these pristine destroyers are in space for a while, they’ll turn gray with debris and space gunk. Chris Plante, who came up with these theory notes that it is supported by the Star Wars: Complete Vehicles encyclopedia, where a breakdown of a Star Destroyer shows the left side as white and the right side as grey- presumably because of dirt. 

  3. Who is Jyn Erso?

     The lead Jyn Erso’s relation to the main story is already being hotly debated. A prevailing theory is that she might be Rey’s mysterious, unknown mother (and as such, potentially a future lover of Luke Skywalker, if he is indeed Rey’s dad), as that would probably work timeline-wise. She’d have to give birth to Rey in her late 40s but that’s not impossible, especially considering the medical advancements likely made in the Star Wars future. Daisy Ridley has already addressed this theory, stating she doesn’t think Jyn has to be her mother just because she looks like her. It could be Star Wars is just obsessed with white brunettes.

    But that isn’t the end of the theories about Jyn. The weirdest one is that Jyn is a young Captain Phasma, which seems pretty unlikely. A few fans have also speculated she’s Poe Dameron’s mom as well. Of course, it’s entirely possible Jyn is just her own woman, related to no one and not the mother of any child. Not everyone in Star Wars has to related, despite the franchise’s love for those type of plotlines. 

  4. Will Darth Vader appear?

     Many fans have noticed the appearance of a mysterious black cloaked character in the trailer. He was surrounded by the Emporer’s royal guards and also kneeling. Many have already speculated he’s Darth Vader, since it would make sense for the dude to appear in this movie, but the character also appears to be hooded, while Vader typically isn’t. But maybe he’s trying a new fashion statement.

    Either way, the black-cloaked character screams “bad guy” and will likely be important in the movie. He could be related to Vader some way, either as a mentor or subordinate or little known BFF. 

  5. Who is Forest Whitaker Playing?

    Forest Whitaker’s character still remains a mystery. He appears in trailer wearing very bulky armor that many have speculated is some sort of power armor. He also appears to be limping and using a cane, too, and gives the impression of a war-torn badass who’s seen and been through a lot. He doesn’t, however, appear to be a member of Jyn’s infiltration team. Many have speculated that he may be a mentor to Jyn, a la ObiWan. There’s a rumor that Whittaker’s character has the codename “Eel Leader” and Making Star Wars speculates this could mean he’s some sort of bounty hunter. 

  6. Who are the Stormtroopers in black?

    We typically only see Stormtroopers wearing white, but some of the Stormtroopers we see in the trailer are wearing all black. Fans have already made a connection to the “dark troopers” from the Star Wars Expanded Universe. These Super Troopers were a project by the Empire that was foiled by Jan Ors, who is pretty similar on a surface level to Jyn Erso so far- she also worked for Mon Mothma and was a spy who stole the plans to the Death Star. They could also potentially be Shadow Troopers, the personal Stormtroopers of Agent Blackhole, the head of Imperial Intelligence, who appear in several expanded universe novels and games. 

  7. Who are the Stormtroopers in gold?

    The black troopers aren’t the only deviation from the standard white though, there also appear to be some gold-ish storm troopers running by. It’s possible these could be Sand Troopers, Stormtroopers equipped to operate on desert worlds that were seen in the original trilogy and the expanded universe, though they looked a little different. It’s also been speculated that they’re some sort Scout Trooper- those are specially trained troopers that provide long range fire. However, it’s also possible they could be sand-stained Clone Troopers. 

  8. Who is Donnie Yen's Character?

    Donnie Yen makes a bombastic appearance in this trailer, taking on Stormtroopers with a sword. This makes him pretty special among Star Wars characters, as most of them rely on blasters and lightsabers, rather than traditional weaponry and martial arts. Yen’s character appears to be wanted by Empire and it seems likely he’ll join Jyn’s team on the desert planet the fight scene takes place on.  

  9. Who's the Droid?

    We see a grey droid following Jyn and the crew around in the trailer. Many have already pegged this little guy as potentially the “performance capture” character played by Alan Tudyk. The information about Tudyk would be portrayed a CGI member of the crew was released along with the first ever image of the movie. If this is indeed Tudyk’s character, it seems like the droid will be full member of the crew. Making Star Wars claims the droid sidekick in this movie is an enforcer droid that was designed to be a combat unit for imperial forces. However, the Rebels have reprogrammed him to help him on their mission instead. Take that, Empire! 

  10. Who's the character played by Diego Luna?

    We see a character played by Diego Luna in the trailer, though he is still unnamed. Fans have already noted he looks a little Han Solo-ish and have also made comparisons to Poe Dameron as well. Some have even speculated that he might be Poe Dameron’s father, but again- not everyone in Star Wars necessarily has to be related, all evidence to the contrary. 

    Considering he’s standing there as Mothma talks to Jyn, we can assume he’s a rebel officer who will come along for Jyn’s mission. Some have speculated that he and Jyn might have a connection from the beginning and that connection might be what gets Jyn to ultimately agree to join the mission, considering how she shares a look with him during the conversation. And of course, many are already calling him as a potential love interest for Jyn. 

  11. Will Jyn Erso switch sides?

    A shot of the trailer shows Jyn decked out in all black Imperial armor- it specifically seems to be the outfit of an Imperial Tie Bomber. The narration says “what will you become” during this shot, indicating that we should question her loyalties. However, it seems likely to me Jyn is only in the bad guy armor as part of her mission. After all, she is supposed to infiltrate the Death Star and would presumably have to go undercover to do that.

    However, the narration and Jyn’s general attitude do seem to indicate she might have her doubts about the mission. Even if she doesn’t switch sides, it’s entirely possible she will question where her loyalties lie and even waver a bit.

    The question is what will cause these loyalties will waver- will she discover the good guys aren’t as good as they seem? Will she be tempted by power? Will she feel like she was forced into this mission from the very start (considering she was led to meet Mothma in handcuffs, it’s entirely possible she was given an ultimatum and basically had to do the mission or else). It will all just remain to be seen. 

  12. Who will die?

    Considering this is a prequel, it’s possible that everyone might not make it out of this heist alive- or no one will make it out alive at all. After all, a mission to infiltrate the Death Star is incredibly dangerous. We do know that the Death Star plans get delivered, but many are speculating that they might be delivered at the cost of many lives. But it’s also possible the movie will follow the franchise’s pattern of only having one major death, if any at all.

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