Jyn’s Mother In Rogue One Was Originally A Jedi

“From our first meetings, [director] Gareth [Edwards] had us drawing pie charts to break down the acts — the first act, the second act, the third act,” explained “Rogue One” concept artist Erik Tiemens. He added that, even in early script drafts, Jyn’s journey was “always a circle, from our hero’s family home to an underworld to the rallying of the troops, and Gareth always wanted to get Jyn back home again; it starts with the home and ends with [a metaphorical] home.”

It’s interesting to contrast Jyn’s backstory with that of Luke Skywalker in “Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope.” Where Luke grows up far removed from the hardships of war before undertaking his grand adventure, Jyn is tossed out of the pan and into the fire when she’s only a child. “Luke’s a boy who grew up out of the way and who dreams of joining the war, and Jyn is a girl who’s grown up in war and wants to find a way back home,” Tiemens noted. “The essence of that is the same; it’s the hero’s journey –- leaving home, finding the truth and facing the enemy, and returning [to a metaphorical] home.”

This, coupled with her lack of connections to the Jedi, is also what makes Jyn a fitting “Star Wars” hero for the modern age. “A New Hope” came out of George Lucas reacting to the horrors of the Vietnam War and Richard Nixon’s presidency in the ’70s following his gentler upbringing in ’60s Modesto, California (a world he memorialized in his wistful 1973 coming-of-age piece “American Graffiti”). His loss of innocence mirrored that of Luke’s and other (white, male, middle-class) Boomers. Those who’ve grown up in the 21st century, on the other hand, are more like Jyn, having dealt with relentless political unrest and social instability the world over. For them, war is nothing to dream about.