Star Wars Rebels is a show for Star Wars fans. It’s filled with tidbits and moments that pay homage to the larger movie and television Universe. However, fans are wondering if central characters in Rebels will ever appear in other Star Wars outlets.
Well, wonder no longer; it happened already.
The revelation comes from Rebels Executive Producer Dave Filoni. He explained what character we’ve already seen… way back in Return of the Jedi.
“I think the one thing I have really thought about is I really do think that Rex is that guy on Endor. I really do. Why else is there a bearded old guy on Endor, Tano? Why? It makes no sense. If you don’t want that to happen, do you know what that means? I’m gonna make that happen. I’m getting like Palpatine, I’m getting power crazy.”
Do you see that older Rebel fighter right in the middle of the picture? That’s Nik Sant. Like many minor characters in Star Wars, an entire backstory was given to him even though he didn’t need one. Sant – also known as “Gramps” – was a survival expert who helped assemble an Endor strike team. Sure, that’s a nice story, but how much cooler would it be if “Nik Sant” turned out to be the rugged, former Stormtrooper, Captain Rex!
With Disney blowing up the Star Wars timeline, plenty of new possibilities can arise, including Captain Rex ending up on Endor. Once a Clone Trooper, he worked his way up to Captain in the famed 501st Legion. Rex was a central figure in The Clone Wars and became the newest member of The Ghost on this season of Rebels. We’ve already seen his transition from Empire Soldier to Rebel Sympathizer; it would make sense that he would keep fighting all the way to the Forest Moon of Endor.
Dave Filoni has had no problem grabbing characters from the Star Wars Universe and putting them into Rebels. Lando Calrissian, Princess Leia, C-3PO, R2-D2 and even Darth Maul all made the transition from the movies to the show. Now is the time for us to take a minor character in the original trilogy and give him a deserving backstory. The time has come to take back Sant and insert Rex!!
So, will Rex actually become the rugged soldier on Endor? Maybe. Will we get a Rebels character in a future Star Wars movie? How about Rogue One? Hopefully. Is it fun to think Captain Rex is that old ‘rough rider’ on Endor? ABSOLUTELY!!!
