Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm back in 2012 has, and continues to be something of a double-edged sword. Had the deal never have taken place, fans would never have been gifted the excellence that is Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni’s The Mandalorian. Love it or hate it, too, J.J. Abrams and Rian Johnson’s controversial Sequel Trilogy introduced an entirely new generation of children to George Lucas’ beloved sci-fi universe, but at what cost?
In order to untangle a number of narrative knots and contradictions, Disney opted to eschew a large amount of Expanded Universe Star Wars material, recategorizing it as non-canon under a new banner: Star Wars Legends. Many of those discarded elements have subsequently returned to canon thanks to shows like Star Wars Rebels and the aforementioned Mandalorian, of course, and fans are now hoping that Disney sees fit to bring back a certain popular character from the games.
Introduced as Darth Vader’s secret apprentice in 2008’s Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, Galen Marek, otherwise known as Starkiller, has become something of a fan favourite in recent years, no thanks due in part, to actor Sam Witwer’s memorable performance. The character’s ultimately tragic arc remains one of the most memorable in Legends, and while a potential reposition back to canon would likely see major elements of that backstory discarded, Reddit user not-MrH thinks they’ve come up with the perfect justification for Starkiller’s return.
Maintaining his ties with Vader as the Sith Lord’s secret apprentice, not-MrH puts forward the idea of having Starkiller be introduced as an Inquisitor or, more specifically, the Jedi-hunting group’s new leader to replace the previous title holder dispatched in Rebels by Ezra Bridger and Kanan Jarrus. A near-perfect fit? We think so, but it remains to be seen if Disney agrees.
Are there other non-canon Star Wars characters you’d like to see make a return to favor in the future? Let us know in the usual place below!