Abrams Underused The Knights Of Ren (Twice)


The Force Awakens reveals Kylo is "master of the Knights of Ren," a group of villains who join the ever-growing ranks of underdeveloped Star Wars antagonists who are more memorable for their costumes than their onscreen actions. It'd be generous to say they have limited screen time, appearing in Force Awakens' Force flashback vision and a handful of moments in The Rise of Skywalker. Despite the hype surrounding their roles in Star Wars 9, the Knights of Ren barely registered as characters and frankly didn't have a whole lot to do. It was disappointing for those looking to see what the dark side warriors were capable of after hearing about them for years. Rise of Skywalker doesn't even bother to say where the Knights were in the previous installments.

On-paper, the Knights of Ren sound like a cool concept, they just aren't executed well in the films. Considering everything the sequel trilogy had on its plate, there arguably wasn't much time to dedicate to them. So, in hindsight, it's worth wondering what the point of even creating the Knights was if they weren't going to serve a meaningful role in the story. Within the context of the full trilogy, they come across as dead weight and the films wouldn't change much (if at all) if they were dropped entirely. That's unfortunate, seeing as there was potential here for something unique and interesting if it had been given the proper treatment from the beginning. The Knights are an afterthought in The Force Awakens, don't have a real place in The Last Jedi, and are just there in Rise of Skywalker.