J.J. Abrams discusses Kylo Ren’s emotional state during that pivotal scene

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

*SPOILER TERRITORY!* *FOR THE LOVE OF GOD RUN AWAY!*

Still here? Good. Okay, so with less than a month to go before the release of the 3D STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS Blu-ray there’s a lot of fervor around the bevy of new special features we can expect. No doubt there will be more behind-the-scenes goodies, but the big one everyone is itching to experience is the feature-length commentary from director J.J. Abrams. We wanna know what was going through that creative genius’ mind while bringing the franchise back to life. Turns out we don’t need to wait anymore.

Okay clearly that was a lie, just not a total lie. USA Today got an exclusive clip of the commentary, and it’s during probably the most pivotal scene from the movie: the death of Han Solo (Harrison Ford). Many shed a tear for the fallen rogue, and now we can hear from the mouth of Abrams what he thinks was going through the head of Solo’s killer, and son, Kylo Ren (real name Ben), played by Adam Driver:

“People have asked me if I think Kylo Ren was just playing with him the whole time, if he meant to kill him from the beginning. And the truth is, I think Kylo Ren in this moment is actually being convinced to walk away from this. Snoke is, as Han says, using him, and I think that somewhere Ben knows this. But I think that he can’t accept it. Deep down he has gone too far.”

As well, Abrams acknowledges a tried and true STAR WARS tradition.

“Obviously anytime two characters in STAR WARS go out on an incredibly thin bridge ten miles above the ground, with no railings, it’s not gonna end well for one of them.”

Though there are some who could see the outcome of that scene coming a galaxy away, Abrams and Co. handled it with grace and sincerity, and I agree there’s a moment where it looks like Ren could actually drop his laser blade and go home where he belongs. But then there’s the moment when the sky goes dark, a shadow washes over Ren’s face, and you know what’s about to happen. A truly fantastic scene, and one really worth listening to the commentary for. I don’t know if it’s enough to throw down my money on another copy of the film, but I’m definitely titillated. A titillated man is capable of dangerous things…so they say.

STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS 3D edition hits November 15!