WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, in theaters now.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker blasted into theaters this weekend and already, fans are debating several scenes from the film. One particular question was if Kylo Ren and Rey were ever meant to be viewed as a romantic pairing. According to the film's director, J.J. Abrams, they're supposed to be more like siblings...except when they're not.
Towards the end of the film, Kylo Ren (now going by Ben) and Rey share a kiss before he dies. Abrams answered a fan who asked if the pairing was implied in The Force Awakens. According to Abrams they weren't although a "bond" was hinted. A video fo the conversation was later reposted back to Twitter by the original poster, @ar1aster.
Abrams said, "There's as much of a brother and sister thing with Rey and Kylo Ren as there is romantic. So it's not literally a sexually/romantic kind of thing. It's more like they're just bound together in this crazy, spiritual way. Again, felt romantic to me."
He then compared the two to the Luke and Leia situation in Empire Strikes Back, saying, "It's like John Williams, if you listen to the --when he first wrote the Luke theme. It was a romantic theme for Luke and Leia. That was kind of what he was thinking because he didn't know where it was going." Although, for many fans, this answer raises more questions than it answers.
Directed and co-written by J.J. Abrams, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker stars Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, Billie Lourd, Keri Russell, Anthony Daniels, Mark Hamill, Billy Dee Williams, and Carrie Fisher, with Naomi Ackie and Richard E. Grant. The film is now in theaters.