Rey

"I'm no one."

- Rey

Rey is the female protagonist of Star Wars: The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi. Rey is a lone scavenger who gets tangled in the war between the Resistance and the First Order. She uncovers her potential as a Force user while on her quest to seek out the last surviving Jedi Master Luke Skywalker to save the galaxy.

Background
Rey was born to unidentified parents. At the age of five, she was dropped off on the planet Jakku. For the next fourteen years, she awaited her family's return in vain. Over the years, she became a proficient scavenger employed under Unkar Plutt, and had to turn in any piece scrap she could salvage in return for food.

Personality
Rey is a loner, due to her being abandoned by her family, but hopes for them to return despite many years of their absence. Despite her years of isolation, Rey is kind, caring, and optimistic. In addition, her years of scavenging have shaped her to become highly adaptive and resourceful, able to find her way out of situations by unorthodox methods. She has a sense of justice, honor and good morals.

Rey is also calm and level-headed, even in life-and-death situations, having spent her life in Jakku's unforgiving climate and atmosphere. In her duel against Kylo Ren, Rey even maintained herself and persisted, despite the odds against her.

Rey's emotions can sometimes cloud her judgment, such as running in fear after her Force vision. She is plagued by loneliness after her family left her and has retained a child-like hope they will find her, but doubts if this is true.

Despite it all, her kindness and compassion remains for everyone and everything, even Kylo Ren. She at one time tried to bring him back to the light after learning the full extent of his past through their bond in the Force. Even when her attempts failed, Ren was legitimately touched by her genuine warmness towards him and, as a result, she endeared herself to him.

Powers

 * The Force: Rey is very powerful and has a very strong connection to the Force, described by Ren as stronger than she realizes. However, until learning from Luke, she had received very little training and depends mostly on skills she learned before she knew she was Force-sensitive or watched someone else use the Force. Despite this and although she is not quite as powerful as Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker respectively; at the two latters' peaks, her powers rival that of Kylo Ren, despite the latter being the grandson of the Chosen One, and the nephew of the leader of the New Jedi Order; therefore making her an exceptionally powerful light and dark side Force-user. According to Snoke, Rey will grow stronger with the light side of the Force.
 * Telekinesis: Rey utilizes Telekinesis either as offense or defense. Her power is shown to be stronger than Kylo Ren's, as she could pry Luke's lightsaber out of his own telekinetic grip when he tried to summon it to his hand, causing it to fly past him and into her hand instead. Additionally, after the Battle of Crait, Rey proved capable of lifting and moving a pile of small boulders simultaneously without much effort to open a passageway out of a cave for the Resistance.
 * Force pull: Rey utilizes Force pull to pull her opponents or objects towards her.
 * Mind trick: Rey utilizes Mind trick to control the minds of other sentient beings, however, it does not work on individuals who have very strong will. It took her three tries to master it, as she used it on a Stormtrooper.
 * Telepathy: Rey utilizes Telepathy to mentally communicate over small or vast distances with other individuals, especially Ren.
 * Mind probe: Rey utilizes Mind probe to sift through the thoughts of a sentient being. She was able to resist Kylo's attempt to probe her mind for the map to Luke Skywalker's location, and even turned his attack back on him to discover his own fears of inadequacy in the shadow of Vader.
 * Force vision: Rey utilizes Force vision to have visions of the past, present, and future; however, like all Force-users, her visions are not always clear or sometimes has visions even when she is not utilizing this power at will. It is also possible that some visions, like the one resulting from when she touched Anakin Skywalker's lightsaber, are the result of Psychometry, another Force power that allows the wielder to see and discern information about people, events, and places by touching objects people carried.
 * Force sense: Rey utilizes Force sense to sense another sentient being's emotions, the future, ripples in the Force caused by momentous or traumatic events, or impending danger and the presence of the dark side. She learned this when Kylo attempted to use it against her.
 * Battle meditation: Rey utilized Battle meditation, allowing her to renew her morale, stamina, and overall battle prowess. This allowed her to defeat the more skilled, yet injured, Kylo Ren in battle by meditating on the Force as Maz Kanata taught her.

Abilities

 * Lightsaber Skills: Despite having no training, Rey has some skills in lightsaber combat and is a very gifted duelist. Rey was able to defeat the Dark Jedi Kylo Ren, despite the latter being far more skilled and experience in lightsaber combat then she is. She was able to overpower him after meditating on the Force as Maz Kanata taught her. However, it should also be noted that Kylo had already been wounded by Chewbacca and Finn respectively, and thus was not at the peak of his strength. Despite her short time training with Luke, she improved enough that she was able to fight Supreme Leader Snoke's Praetorian Guards on even terms alongside Kylo Ren and eventually with his aid, overpower and kill the eight deadly warriors.
 * Skilled Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Rey is skilled in unarmed combat.
 * Skilled Staff Fighter: Rey is skilled in staff fighting, having used her staff for much of her life.
 * Skilled Markswoman: Rey is skilled in utilizing blaster pistols.
 * Master Pilot: Rey is highly skilled in piloting various speeders and every type of flight craft.
 * Master Engineer: As a scavenger, Rey has a good understanding of engineering and the things she collects. She has knowledge about multiple different machines and ships, which proves useful when she accidentally comes into possession of the Millennium Falcon. She knew how to work a ship's computer and circuitry systems. which allowed her to prevent the Millennium Falcon from breaking apart by removing one of the ship's circuits.
 * Multilingual: Rey is currently capable of fluently speaking English, Shyriiwook, and Binary.

Weapons and Equipment

 * Quarterstaff: Created by Rey, this staff served as her initial weapon of choice and navigation tool. The staff was crucial to helping Rey explore downed Star Destroyers, as it helped her choose her steps wisely.
 * NN-14 blaster pistol: Rey acquired this pistol from Han Solo. She only wielded this weapon on Takodana, but it did serve her well.
 * Lightsaber: Rey first encountered Anakin Skywalker's lightsaber in Maz Kanata's castle, suffering visions after touching the weapon. The lightsaber was apparently calling to Rey through the Force, according to Maz, but Rey refused it. It was not until the battle on Starkiller Base that Rey finally wielded the lightsaber with great skill and kept the weapon during her journey to find Luke.

The Force Awakens
On the desert planet of Jakku, Rey discovers an astromech droid named BB-8 and acquires him after rescuing the droid from a scavenger. Unbeknownst to her, the droid carried a piece of a map that led to the location of Luke Skywalker, causing Rey to become a target of the First Order. She meets a renegade stormtrooper Finn and together they use the Millennium Falcon to get off Jakku. While Rey is unaware of his true identity, Finn lies to her in saying he is with the Resistance.

After the Falcon breaks down, they are abducted in a larger ship by the Falcon's previous owners, Han Solo and Chewbacca. Rey accidentally releases some rathtars which prove useful in their escape, as Han's dealings with a couple of gangs did not go so well, though she did rescue Finn at one point from one of the monsters. Han explains to them that Luke attempted to rebuild the Jedi Order, but went into exile after one of his students (who was also Han's son Ben) turned to the dark side and destroyed all that Luke built up.

Han and Chewbacca take the trio to Takodana to meet with Maz Kanata. Before going in, Han offered Rey a job to work for him in taking care of the Falcon, but Rey refuses, as she feels obligated to return to Jakku and wait for her family. During their meeting with Maz, Finn tries to leave the planet with a couple of aliens and reveals his backstory to Rey, offering her to escape with him to run away from the First Order. Rey refuses as Finn starts to leave with the other aliens.

Rey then hears the screams of a young girl in the lower part of the castle, where she discovers the lightsaber that previously belonged to Luke and Anakin Skywalker. Upon touching the saber, she receives a number of visions showcasing the past and of her family leaving her, and hears the words of Obi-Wan Kenobi. Maz finds her and explains to her that the lightsaber was calling to her. She leaves in fear as BB-8 follows her into the woods.

In the Battle on Takodana, Rey encounters the evil Kylo Ren, who caused her to collapse unconscious with the Force and tries to use her to locate Luke as she witnessed BB-8 show the map earlier. She is taken aboard the Starkiller Base. Ren fails to interrogate her by invading her mind, but Rey discovers what Maz meant when she found her in the castle basement - she is the Force Sensitive and is able to use the same abilities Ren is trying to use on her to turn the tables. She enters his mind and senses that he is afraid he would never be as strong as his idol and grandfather, Darth Vader. Rey uses the Jedi Mind Trick and hones her new abilities to escape. She reunites with Finn, Han Solo, and Chewbacca, and is glad that Finn chose to stay behind and help the Resistance.

They then plant thermal detonators inside the base in order to help the Resistance destroy the base, during which they witness Han Solo's death at the hands of his son, Kylo Ren. The three fire at Ren in rage, and later escape the crumbling base. Finn and Rey later confront the injured Ren in the snowy forest, and Ren uses the force to knock Rey out by smashing her against a tree. Finn uses the lightsaber Rey found earlier to fight Kylo Ren and defend her, but loses and is severely injured. Before Ren can retrieve the blue lightsaber, Rey uses the Force to take it and duels Ren herself. While Ren initially has the upper hand, Rey uses the Force to overpower and defeat the already injured Kylo Ren, leaving a gruesome scar on his face in the process. The planet starts to fall apart as Rey finds the unconscious Finn, but they are rescued by Chewbacca and escape to D'Qar.

As she and Leia mourn Han's death, R2-D2 wakes up, and using BB-8's missing piece, they discover where Luke Skywalker is hiding. Rey decides to go find him, but before she does, she kisses the comatose Finn and thanks him for everything. She, Chewbacca, and R2-D2 go to Ahch-To, where she meets the older Luke Skywalker and presents him with his lightsaber.

Star Wars: Forces of Destiny
Rey appears in the animated miniseries, Star Wars: Forces of Destiny, with Daisy Ridley reprising her role.

In "Sands of Jakku", which takes place after Rey rescues BB-8 from scavengers, Rey takes the droid to her home. As they cross the desert, they are chased by a Nightwatcher worm that tries to eat BB-8. She saves her new friend, and, out of compassion, gives the worm something else to feast on. In "BB-8 Bandits" Rey and BB-8 are on their way to Niima Outpust, but end up getting chased by Teedo and two others. Riding speeder bikes, Rey and BB-8 are chased across the desert and into the wreckage of a Star Destroyer, where the Nightwatcher that Rey and BB-8 encountered in the previous episode shows up and attacks Teebo.

Another short takes place aboard the Millennium Falcon with Han Solo, Chewbacca, and Finn as Rey tries to disarm an explosive tracking device hidden aboard the craft by Unkar Plutt.

Disney INFINITY
Rey makes an appearance in the third game, being playable in The Force Awakens Play Set and the Toy Box. She can also be used in the other Star Wars play sets when the player collects her crossover coins in each play set.

Star Wars: Force Arena
Rey is a playable character in Star Wars: Force Arena as a Legendary squad leader card.

LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Rey is a playable character in LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Her role in the game is very similar to her role in the film, albeit with some changes due to game levels and character abilities.

Disney Parks
Rey is a rare meet-and-greet character in the Disney Parks and was added to the Star Wars: A Galaxy Far, Far Away stage show at Disney's Hollywood Studios on June 30, 2017.

Finn
Rey first met Finn on the planet Jakku, after he rescued from Poe Dameron the First Order, and when it appeared the latter had apparently died in his rescue attempt, their relationship at first got off on the wrong foot, when Rey believed he had stole BB-8's master's jacket, only for him correct them, what actually happened, she assumed he was a member of the resistance, however, he did not reveal that he was actually a former member of the First Order, as he was ashamed what he had done for them.

Over time, the two become good friends. When Finn finally revealed his true identity as a Stormtrooper to Rey, she was not angry with him for lying to her or about who he really was, when she was captured by Kylo Ren, he goes to the Starkiller Base to rescue her, despite the fact that he did not know Rey for very long, when Finn was seriously injured by Ren, she tries to avenge him, Rey defeats Ren (due to him being previously injured by Chewbacca and Finn respectively).

Han Solo
Rey first met Han after she and Finn barely escaped from the First Order's military forces on the planet Jakku, she was amazed to learn that who he really was; that he fought with the Rebel Alliance in Galactic Civil War, and is Luke Skywalker's old friend. Over time, Rey came to see Han as a mentor and father-figure, and the two become good friends. When Han was killed by Kylo Ren, she was utterly devastated and called Kylo Ren a monster.

During Han's mission to rescue Rey and destroy Starkiller Base, Han is killed by Kylo Ren. Enraged by Han's death, Rey tries to kill Kylo, but the two are separated due to the planet collapsing. After this, Rey mourns and grieves over Han's death.

Luke Skywalker
Before she officially met Luke, Rey had heard a lot about the Jedi Master, but believed him to only be a myth and legend; until she met Finn who told her that BB-8 had a map to Luke's location. After Rey was captured by Kylo Ren (due to her seeing the map that BB-8 had) she resisted his attempt to probe her mind for the map to Luke's location, despite the fact that she did not personally know the Jedi Master, she likely has developed great respect for the latter.

Rey goes to Ahch-To, where she meets the elderly Luke and presents him with his father's lightsaber; remaining silent.

Ben Solo/Kylo Ren
Ren and Rey have been enemies ever since Rey located and rescued BB-8. Ren is very convinced of her power, believing even she does not know it. Rey's hatred of him increased after he killed Han Solo. She successfully called Anakin's lightsaber, which Ren believes rightfully belongs to him, to her when he could not. She dueled and defeated Kylo with Anakin Skywalker's lightsaber, scarring his face (unaware that Ren was, in fact, Anakin's grandson). Despite this, Ren very much longs to turn Rey to the dark side and train her.

Trivia

 * Prior to the casting of Daisy Ridley, Rey was portrayed as a blonde in concept art. After Ridley's casting in 2014, newer concept art reflected her appearance.
 * In the global casting call for Episode VII, Rey's named was changed to "Rachel" for the audition scripts.
 * In the Bible, Rachel was the sister of Leah, a name which is also spelt as "Leia", a reference to the lead female character of the first three "Star Wars" films.
 * Actresses Saoirse Ronan and Ksenia Solo were on a shortlist for the role of Rey before Daisy Ridley landed it.
 * Rey was infamously absent from Star Wars: The Force Awakens-themed merchandise, including a Monopoly set, and had very few figures on sale. She was apparently not included in the Monopoly set out of fear of spoiling her Force sensitivity and role as the true protagonist of the sequel trilogy, but was later included in a later version, sporting the lightsaber she wields in the climax.
 * Rather than "Ray" - the typical spelling within the United States - the character's name is spelt as "Rey" - the typical spelling in all other Spanish and Occitan-speaking regions.