Star Wars Episode IX: Duel Of The Fates - 10 Things We Learned From Colin Trevorrow's Leaked Script

8. It Acknowledges The Last Jedi, And Builds Upon Its Themes

Generally speaking, one other thing that Trevorrow's script had going for it was that it built upon the foundations laid by Rian Johnson in The Last Jedi.

While The Rise of Skywalker relegates Luke's sacrifice on Crait to a footnote during a conversation between Poe Dameron and Zorii Bliss, it governs the entire opening of Duel of the Fates. The First Order's extreme crackdown comes as a result of Luke's death inspiring a wave of uprisings, while Rey and Kylo's arcs over the course of the script speak more to the themes of Episode VIII, with both seemingly moving away from the dichotomy between Jedi and Sith.

It goes beyond that too, of course. The film delves once more into Rey's parentage but not in a way that directly contradicts The Last Jedi's most important revelation, while Luke's promise to Kylo at the end of the film is also delivered upon, among other, more exciting teases Johnson's sequel left unresolved.