10 Star Wars Moments Actors Didn't Know Were Coming
5. The Cast Didn't Know About Rey's Lineage - The Rise Of Skywalker
Family has always played a huge role in Star Wars, going far deeper than just Darth Vader being Luke's father. The fact that the nine core movies are referred to as the Skywalker Saga shows that everything revolves around this single family.
This is arguably why fans were at first in denial that Rey wasn't related to anyone of note. Whether it was Luke, Obi-Wan, or someone else, the protagonist of the sequel trilogy was always expected to be related to another big player in the franchise. But nobody could've guessed that she was Emperor Palpatine's granddaughter.
This was very much JJ Abrams' version of the massive Empire Strikes Back reveal, though nowhere near as good. It was never going to be as game-changing or as iconic as Vader's famous line, but the secrecy surrounding it was exactly the same.
Oscar Isaac told Digital Spy that the familial connection between Rey and her grandfather was kept out of the scripts the rest of the cast had. Even if it wasn't, it was such a ludicrous and out-of-leftfield twist that they probably wouldn't have believed it anyway.