Following the theatrical release of The Rise of Skywalker in late 2019, fans have enjoyed a wealth of news and artwork showcasing unused concepts and ideas from the film for a look at what could've been and what inspired specific moments in Episode IX.
In the months following the conclusion of the Skywalker Saga, fans have seen artwork showing Rey with Kylo Ren's signature lightsaber, Rey visiting the homestead on Tatooine, and Rey donning Kylo Ren's helmet.
Much of the concept art that has been shared with fans has come from film concept artist Adam Brockbank; and even though many fans have shifted their focus to The Mandalorian and other upcoming Star Wars projects for Disney+, Brockbank has intrigued fans yet again with several new pieces that were never realized on-screen last December.
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Adam Brockbank, known for his work on all the Harry Potter films and most of Disney's Star Wars films, recently took to Instagram to share several fascinating pieces of concept art from 2019's The Rise of Skywalker.
The idea of Dark Rey has intrigued fans since The Rise of Skywalker sizzle reel was released during D23 in 2019, and Adam Brockbank has previously shared various concepts of how Rey's vision of herself having turned to the Dark Side would look.
This new image is somewhat similar to a piece he shared in April of 2020, as both concepts show Rey in red; however, this Rey's is wearing attire similar to that of Kylo Ren's and looks to have burn marks on her face.
On Instagram, Brockbank captioned this image saying, "Last man standing... Kylo’s rampage early on in TROS." Unfortunately, we don't know whether this piece was intended for the scene on Mustafar, Exegol, or for a scene that never made it into the film.
Brockbank captioned this image Instagram saying, "Tangerine Dream... lightsaber duel in a sandstorm in the ruins of the homestead. Early development concept."
Again, Brockbank has shared images of Rey on Tatooine before, but the artwork only showed her interacting with Tusken Raiders and finding Luke's model Skyhopper from A New Hope. Seeing her duel with Kylo Ren at the Lars Homestead on Tatooine is a new and incredibly interesting concept.
Getting to see concept art following a film's conclusion is always fascinating because it offers a glimpse at what could've been. It also reveals the ideas the writers and directors were considering when it comes to the look of a character or the plot points for a story.
Designing Dark Rey was clearly a challenge but one rich with possibilities; it's been fun to see what avenues Brockbank and other artists were exploring with that plot point. But the most interesting of these images has to be that of Rey fighting with Kylo Ren on Tatooine.
It seems the filmmakers always intended for Rey to visit the Lars Homestead in The Rise of Skywalker to tie up the Skywalker Saga, but the idea of the homestead as the location for her and Kylo Ren's duel is intriguing, because of the weight and meaning it would've added to the scene.
In the film, Rey and Kylo fight on the wreckage of the second Death Star. While the waves added to the beauty and drama of the scene, it also made it easy to forget the significance of the location. Having the two of them fight on Tatooine, where Luke and Anakin once walked, would've certainly added to the drama and further connected the Skywalker Saga.
