'Star Wars: Episode IX' Title Is Still Unknown, But Here Are 4 Options
Star Wars: The Force Awakens arrived on Dec. 17, 2015. Star Wars: The Last Jedi arrives in only a few days, on Dec. 15, 2017. The final installment will arrive on the Dec. 20, 2019, after moving from the original date of May 23, when J.J. Abrams took over. With just over two years until the final installment, it seems like a good time to speculate on the Star Wars: Episode IX title.
It's far too early to be doing this, of course. The title for The Force Awakens appeared in January of 2015 and The Last Jedi was revealed this past January of 2017. The final title probably won't be announced until January of 2019, just as Game of Thrones is airing their final six episodes.
But with titles running around like Star Wars Episode IX: The Still Untitled One Without Leia, Star Wars: Episode IX: Porgs On The Run and my personal favorite, Star Wars Into Darkness, perhaps it for the best that we try and come up with something a little more sensible.
Looking at the titles of the other Star Wars movies, there are three styles that the series has gone with.
- Article-Adjective-Noun (A New Hope, The Last Jedi)
- Article-Noun-Action Verb (The Force Awakens, The Empire Strikes Back)
- Action Verb (of the) Noun (Attack of the Clones, Return of the Jedi, Revenge of the Sith)
With that in mind, we considered that our third trilogy has already used formats one and two for their first two titles, but has thus far has not used any of the "Of The" format. So we picked three "Of The" titles, and, just to be safe, one that was more action verb-oriented.
1. Star Wars: Fate Of The First Order
I assume Episode IX will have a happy ending. It will be the final go-round of this story of the Skywalkers after 40 years and counting. The series isn't going to go out on a bum note, not after all this time.
There may be bittersweet notes, but in the end, The Resistance will prevail, the First Order will fall. But the title doesn't want to give that away. So this nicely alliterative "Fate of the First Order" might do nicely.
2. Star Wars: The Resistance's Last Stand
Going in the opposite direction, this version is a counterpoint title to the original Empire Strikes Back. If the Empire strikes back, doesn't the Resistance have a last stand?
It would be a good fit for a movie that opens with Rey having joined the Dark Side, Leia and Han both gone, and Luke on his own with Finn and Poe, leading the Resistance in their last, desperate mission.
3. Star Wars: Knight of the Republic
I like this one because this forms a phrase: "The Force Awakens The Last Jedi, Knight of the Republic." But beyond that, it also calls back to the Jedi's past, before the "Hundred-Year Darkness" when the Sith and the Jedi split from one another and began practicing with only the Dark Side or the Light Side of the Force.
Before this split, the Jedi and the Sith were one body, one soul, one order. With Rey and Kylo Ren being so strong and balanced in both the Dark and the Light, I suspect the true ending to the story is not about the First Order, or The Resistance. It's the reunification of the practitioners of the Force.
It's the end of the Jedi and the end of the Sith. It's the rise of those who will bring both sides together and heal the galaxy once and for all: The Knights of the Republic.
4. Star Wars: The Spirit of the Galaxy
In the same vein as the last title, this is my second choice for a movie that ends with the Dark and the Light Sides of the Force joining forces and healing the galaxy.
The Force may be what we call it today, but it wasn't the only name for the ability that Rey and Ren possess. The Lasats, for example, used to call it "the spirit of the galaxy." In terms of a title that's inspiring, uplifting, and brings hope, the same way the original trilogy did, they couldn't do much better than going with a title like this.
Meanwhile, Star Wars: The Last Jedi arrives in theaters everywhere on Friday, Dec. 15, 2017.
