Unused concept art from Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker shows Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) facing off against a pack of feral space wolves. In the months since The Rise of Skywalker’s release in theaters, more information has emerged about the film’s plot points, as well as those that never came to pass. In the case of the former, The Rise of Skywalker novelization has attempted to clear up some of the plot points that caused the most consternation among fans. Most centered on Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid), his mysterious resurrection, and his relation to Rey (Daisy Ridley). It’s debatable how successful said novelization actually was, as many fans have taken issue with how things played out.
In regards to the things that never came to pass, most come from Colin Trevorrow’s scrapped Star Wars 9 script. Trevorrow was initially hired to direct, but he was then removed from the project and replaced with JJ Abrams. However, Trevorrow had already written the script for his version of the film, and since The Rise of Skywalker’s release, the entire script has been put online for fans to read and judge for themselves. Trevorrow’s film, titled Duel of the Fates, would have taken the franchise in a radically different direction.
This newest piece of unused concept art, shared by Yahoo Entertainment, is from an early draft of the Rise of Skywalker script written by Abrams and Chris Terrio. Much like Duel of the Fates, their early version of the film featured a great deal of action on Coruscant. The art, which is from the upcoming The Art of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker book, features Kylo Ren on Coruscant opposite the planet’s only inhabitants: a pack of “ferocious alien wolves.”
In The Rise of Skywalker, Kylo Ren is first seen on Mustafar attempting to track down the Sith wayfinder that will get him to Exegol. Ren spends most of the film attempting to convince Rey to join him in taking on Palpatine, though in the end he’s swayed back to the side of the light and helps Rey save the day. Ren’s abrupt redemption arc earned some criticism from those who believed it happened too quickly. However, The Rise of Skywalker tried to explain this by using his parents, Leia (Carrie Fisher) and Han Solo (Harrison Ford), to help pull him back from the dark side.
