Star Wars: The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams has revealed numerous details about the upcoming film’s mysterious villain Kylo Ren.

Speaking with EW, Abrams confirms the origin of Kylo Ren’s mask, as well as why his lightsaber looks the way it does.

“The movie explains the origins of the mask and where it’s from, but the design was meant to be a nod to the Vader mask,” Abrams said. “[Ren] is well aware of what’s come before, and that’s very much a part of the story of the film.”



The lightsaber with a broadsword-like design was crafted by Ren, and is “as fierce and as ragged as the character,” according to Abrams.

The director also gave up juicy background details on Kylo Ren, suggesting that his origin is not all that different from 1977’s Star Wars: A New Hope’s Luke Skywalker.

In A New Hope, Skywalker was a farm boy who eventually became a Jedi Knight and battled the Empire. Ren’s path might follow a similar theme.



“As you see in the best of storytelling, and no doubt the best of Star Wars, these are tales in which an everyperson has to step up,” said the director. “And I think that what makes Ren so unique is that he isn’t as fully formed as when we meet a character such as Darth Vader. And I think that there are two sides to the Force. Both sides, arguably, would see themselves as the hero of their story, and I think that applies here.”

Finally, Abrams reveals that there’s more to Kylo Ren’s name. It has been known that he is in affiliation with the First Order. It appears Ren is a surname given to members of the Knights of Ren, similar to the idea of Sith Lords taking on Darth as a title.



Abrams stopped short of talking about who the Knights of Ren are, but Kylo Ren is “not your prototypical mustache-twirling bad guy.”

In related Star Wars news, it was confirmed there would be no new Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer at the upcoming D23 Expo. Writer-producer Simon Kinberg detailed the process of plotting the future of Star Wars. And, in case you missed it, here are nine things we learned about The Force Awakens at San Diego Comic Con last month.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens hits theaters December 18, 2015.