Kylo Ren's Shirtless Scene In 'The Last Jedi' Has A Deeper Meaning That You Think

There are so many, many spoilers in Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Deaths that people should definitely not be allowed to know about before their first viewing. Survivals that should be kept under wraps, if possible. But one thing that's not kept under wraps in this film? Ben Solo's torso, baby. Yes, Kylo Ren takes it off (but not all off), causing fans to raise eyebrows. But is Kylo Ren's shirtless scene in The Last Jedi actually necessary? Or is it just an extra slice of beefcake for the Reylo masses?

The Star Wars crew insist this was not just gratuitous partial nudity. There was a very good reason to have Adam Driver show off his muscles. And not only does it exist for a reason, but that reason is backed by that most vital of excuses, "the Star Wars canon."

No seriously, the Star Wars canon insisted that Kylo Ren be half naked in this movie. Have you thanked the Star Wars canon today?

The problem is, it's kind of a lame reason, and only makes it seem more like the addition of shirtless Adam Driver was just there because... well, do you really need a reason for shirtless Adam Driver?

Exactly.

Now, Adam Driver might not be everyone's cup of espresso, especially if you check out the hot debates on my Facebook page on the subject. But even if it's not the most attractive upper chest on the beaches of Ahch-To, you can't argue with the fact that Kylo Ren keeps himself in shape.

But this is canon how, exactly? Is it canon because we had shirtless Anakin (Hayden Christensen) in the prequels? (In the original trilogy, everyone keeps their clothes on, or is obscured enough that you never see anything.)

So, what is this canon reason for showing off how the hours in the dreadnought gym are paying off for Snoke's apprentice? Speaking to HuffPost, co-sound supervisor Ren Klyce insists it established an important fact.

The way in which [director Rian Johnson] decided to create the Force connection by just simply doing vertical cuts without using any CG ... it’s pure simplicity in terms of filmmaking with visual cuts. We cut to her side; we cut to Kylo Ren; we cut to her; and back and forth. That was important to establish what she was actually seeing. Was she hearing his voice or seeing his face or just his eyes? And so that [shirtless scene] is to inform the audience, ‘Oh, she can see his body.’

But... that doesn't make any sense. Because that's not the scene where Kylo and Rey establish they can see each other's full bodies. They establish that in the first connection scene, where she shoots him in the chest.

Clearly, she can see more than just his face, but his whole body, because she just tried to shoot him in the chest.

The dialogue that follows after she tried to shoot him in the chest further establishes they can see more than each other's faces, but standing before each other plainly. What they can't see is where the other is standing. Kylo sees Rey standing on the deck of the dreadnought, not on Ahch-To. Rey sees him as if he's in her cabin, and then standing on the rock.

If anything, what this establishes is that Kylo is attracted to Rey, and that he's hoping she is attracted to him, too. It's practically an "answering the door in a towel" move. Especially since he doesn't put on anything when she asks him to.

If that were the reason given, I would totally buy it. Heck, if they just said, "We did it because it would make the audience laugh," I would buy it. But, "It was necessary, because we had to establish they see each other"? C'mon, y'all. Next time, come up with better excuses.