Star Wars: The Force Awakens - 5 Clues To What Kylo Ren Really Is

5. Kylo Ren Has Grown Up With The Legend Of Darth Vader

It was rumoured from very early on in the movie's production, and has become increasingly apparent through the trailers, that the legend of Darth Vader will play a major part in The Force Awakens, despite the notable handicap of being dead. This was, let's be honest, always inevitable. Vader is the single most iconic element of all of Star Wars and after the prequels repositioned the whole saga as his story, he naturally needed to have some presence in the ongoing story; having his legacy intertwined with the ongoing story somewhat legitimises the existence of Episodes after the death of the series' "main character". But how does this relate to Kylo Ren? Well, aside from the obvious connection with the unseen Luke, he seems to be the main conduit for this Vader inclusion. And that is very telling about the character. Adam Driver is 32, meaning Kylo was a kid during/just after the events of the original trilogy and thus grew up with the legend of Darth Vader and the Empire looming large. It's already clear he views himself has having an affinity with Vader, but given that context it actually goes beyond that; the Knight of Ren was actually influenced by the legend of the Dark Lord.