Is Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker woke?
Movie · 2019
Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker has a wokeness score of 5/10, which we rate as Socially Conscious. Clear woke themes are present and intentional, but feel balanced and organic to the story. The message supports the plot and characters rather than dominating them.
Key points
- Emphasizes diverse representation with female lead Rey, Black Finn, Latino Poe, and brief same-sex kiss.
- Rey's powerful Jedi arc embodies female empowerment, sidelining male characters of color like Finn.
- Performative diversity criticized by Boyega for diminishing non-white roles despite prominent marketing.
Wokeness analysis
Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker represents a noticeable shift toward woke commentary through its emphasis on diverse representation, including a female lead in Rey, Black actor John Boyega as Finn, Latino Oscar Isaac as Poe, and new characters like Naomi Ackie's Jannah. The film features a brief same-sex kiss between two minor female Resistance fighters in the background during the victory celebration, a token gesture at LGBTQ+ inclusion that drew criticism from both sides—too much for anti-woke audiences and too little for progressives seeking substantive queer storylines. Rey's arc as a powerful, untrained female Jedi who defeats the ultimate evil embodies progressive empowerment tropes, positioning her as the Skywalker heir while sidelining male characters of color like Finn, who is reduced to comic relief and repetitive side quests despite initial marketing as a co-lead. This mishandling fueled accusations of performative diversity, with Boyega publicly calling out Disney for promoting non-white characters prominently only to diminish them, highlighting how ideology shapes casting over coherent storytelling. Poe's arc touches on leadership growth but feels underdeveloped, serving more as support for the female protagonist. The sequel trilogy's internal contradictions—retconning The Last Jedi's subversions while pandering to fan demands—underscore forced ideological elements, such as gender-balanced screen time (51% female) and multicultural Resistance fighters rising against a white male villain like Palpatine. Yet, these themes integrate somewhat organically into the escapist plot of rebellion and redemption, without overt preaching or lectures on social justice. Entertainment remains primary, with spectacle, nostalgia, and action dominating, though the agenda subtly influences character priorities, alienating core fans weary of Hollywood's progressive mandates. Critics from conservative viewpoints note this as part of Disney's broader pattern of prioritizing representation over narrative depth, contributing to the trilogy's divisive reception and box-office underperformance relative to expectations.
Plot
In the wake of The Last Jedi, Emperor Palpatine reveals himself alive on the hidden Sith world of Exegol, commanding a massive Final Order fleet to crush the Resistance. Rey, training under Leia's guidance and haunted by her Force bond with Kylo Ren, learns she is Palpatine's granddaughter and grapples with her dark heritage. Joined by Finn, Poe, and Chewbacca, Rey pursues ancient Sith artifacts—a dagger and waypoint—to locate Exegol and confront the Emperor. Kylo, torn between light and dark, hunts Rey while facing visions of his father Han Solo. The Resistance rallies allies across the galaxy, including Lando Calrissian, for a desperate assault. Amid lightsaber duels, betrayals, and revelations, Rey channels the voices of past Jedi to defeat Palpatine, Kylo redeems as Ben Solo to save her, and the heroes celebrate victory as the galaxy rises against tyranny.
Analyzed by AI on January 30, 2026