Star Wars: The Force Awakens Character Guide

"There's been an awakening."

As the hype train for Star Wars: The Force Awakens continues to pick up steam, more and more information on the movie is finding its way out into the big wide world. Much of what makes the film tick is still being kept tightly under wraps, but between all the leaks, speculation, and official press releases, we’re beginning to build a up a better picture of the film’s main movers and shakers, as well as how they fit into the wider Star Wars universe.

If you’ve been living on a moisture farm on Tatooine for the last twelve months, don’t fear, we’ve assembled this handy character guide that brings together everything we know about each of the film’s main characters, before condensing all that info into a single article of easily-digestible, Star Wars-y goodness.

Spoiler warning: The following text may contain slight spoilers for Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Captain Phasma

How do you make the iconic Stormtrooper look even cooler? By slathering their plastoid shells with a coat of shiny, reflective chrome, of course. Thanks to this eye-catching ensemble, Captain Phasma, or the Chrome Trooper as she was dubbed back when she first appeared, has become one of the Force Awaken’s most talked about new characters.

As with all the coolest-looking members of the Star Wars universe (c’mon, just look at that sweet cape!), Phasma bats for the Dark Side of the Force, and operates out of the Starkiller base alongside fellow neerdowells Kylo Ren and General Hux. Just in case the name wasn’t enough of a giveaway, Phasma’s a Captain in the First Order - a military faction who are picking up where the Empire left off and fighting against the Rebels Forces for control of the galaxy. She is reportedly in command of Finn, the character played by Attack the Block’s John Boyega, and spends the film running him down after he has a change of heart and abandons The First Order.

At this point, it’s unclear just how big a role Phasma will play in The Force Awakens, but rumours indicate that the silvery Stormtrooper will be present in all three films, with a character arc that spans the entire trilogy. The actor filling Phasma’s shiny chrome boots is none other than Gwendoline Christie, who is well versed in the ways of badassery thanks to her time spent playing fan-favourite character Brienne in Game of Thrones.

Although we’ve only been able to snatch glimpses of the character in action, she already has a legion of loyal of fans, not least among them Force Awakens’ director JJ Abrams. During a recent interview, he admitted that Phasma was his favourite new addition to the film, praising Christie's performance as well as the ‘trooper’s ‘undeniable’ visual design. As for that name, fans of the horror flick Phantasm will be delighted to learn that Abrams chose it because Phasma’s design immediately put him in mind of the murderous, mirrorlike sphere featured in Don Coscarelli’s cult film series.

Finn

Having played the lead role in cult Brit-flick Attack the Block, John Boyega is no stranger to the world of science fiction. Still, it’s safe to say his role in The Force Awakens will be the young actor’s biggest yet.

His character in The Force Awakens, who goes by the name Finn, begins his adventure on the side of evil - not to say his character is evil - and can be seen in the trailers tooling around the desert in Stormtrooper armour. That’s right, Finn begins the film as a member of The First Order. For reasons unknown - other than that Finn is stranded on the planet Jakku after his unit desert him - the ex-Stormtrooper teams up with Rey and turns on his former masters.

Official descriptions peg Finn as a conflicted character, one struggling to distance himself from his past. So far, only his first name has been revealed, a move which JJ Abrams says is completely deliberate. This has lead to speculation that the character is tied in some way to a past Star Wars character. Of course, this could just be an attempt by Abrams to throw us off the scent and start making connections where there are none - a tactic the director hasn’t been shy about employing in the past.

Much to the envy of everyone’s inner twelve-year-old, Finn will get to wield a lightsaber - Luke’s lightsaber, in fact - at some point in the movie. A recent promo video shows the young warrior confronting Kylo Ren with the iconic ‘saber in hand. This would seem to confirm the rumours that Finn’s a Jedi, or at least has the potential to become a full, robe-wearing, platitude-spewing wielder of The Force.

Kylo Ren

You can't have a Star Wars movie without a man in black menacing people with a red lightsaber; the original trilogy had Darth Vader, the prequels had Darth Maul, and The Force Awakens has Kylo Ren.

Since his reveal, it’s been confirmed that this mysterious malfeasant isn’t actually a Sith - hence the lack of Darth in his name - but a member of the Knights of Ren. This shadowy sect is affiliated with The First Order and are attempting to take control of the galaxy “using the same power of the Force once used by the Galactic Empire.” It’s also where the Ren part of Kylo’s name comes from.

As you’d expect, the character’s real name remains a closely guarded secret, leading many to speculate that Kylo is related to someone from the original trilogy. Han and Leia’s wayward son? Chewbacca’s secret lovechild? Place your bets now.

Like any good student of the Force, Kylo looks to past masters for instruction, modelling his look and mannerisms on those of the dastardly Darth Vader, who the Knights of Ren hold up as a kind of “martyr” figure. Unlike Vader, however, Kylo Ren is a little rougher around the edges, less fully formed, an idea reinforced by his slightly ragged appearance and unrefined lightsaber. In stark contrast to the traditional glow sticks of doom sported by other Force users, Ren’s ‘saber spits and crackles like the flame from a blowtorch and has two extra blades, which form a sort of lightsaber crossguard.

Lawrence Kasdan, the legendary screenwriter responsible for The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, and now Force Awakens, says Ren’s character (played by Adam Driver) brings his own unique flavour to the saga, claiming that “there’s never been a character quite like the one that Adam plays.”

Poe Dameron 

Played by Oscar Isaac, Poe Dameron is one of The Force Awakens three main leads, sharing top billing with John Boyega’s Finn and Daisy Ridley’s Rey.

Just in case the trailer, which showed the character rocking a Rebel-like uniform whilst crammed into an X-Wing fighter, wasn’t enough of a giveaway, Poe is a pilot for the Resistance. Like most pilots in pop fiction, Poe’s a bit of of a hot-shot; brash, confident and a little bit reckless. He gets the chance to test his mettle after a certain princess charges him with the completion of a mission that could change the fate of the galaxy.

Poe has strong ties to the Resistance movement having grown up on Yavin IV, a place Star Wars aficionados will recognise as the home of the Alliance base which launched the attack on the original Death Star. Unlike his fellow cast members, Isaac hasn’t shied away from talking about his character’s background and motivations. During a Lucasfilm panel, the actor floated the idea that Poe was present during the medal ceremony on Yavin IV glimpsed in the closing moments of the original Star Wars. In Isaac’s view, this event inspired in Poe a desire to get into the hero business and take up the mantle previously held by Luke, Leia and Han.

Poe flies under the alias Black Leader and mans the controls of a sleek, modernised X-Wing starfighter, one that sports a slick orange and black paint job. His co-pilot is the adorable, snowman-shaped astro-droid BB-8, who - if the rumours are true - is holding onto the Skywalker family lightsaber for safekeeping. Is Poe’s mission to get the lightsaber into the hands of Finn or Rey? After seeing the latest footage which shows off Finn brandishing the iconic ‘saber, it certainly looks that way.

Rey

Another character whose origins are shrouded in secrecy, Rey (played by Daisy Ridley) has been described as resourceful, resilient, and not much else. We know that she calls the desert planet Jakku home and - according to a recently discovered blurb for a Rey Halloween costume - lives within the cosy confines of a decommissioned AT-AT. Although a description from the back of a costume box isn’t the most trustworthy of sources, we’re tempted to believe this, especially as it fits with what we already know about the character, namely that she’s a scavenger and has lived on Jakku all her life.

She may have strange taste in home décor, but Rey is one tough gal, a life spent amongst the cutthroats that call Jakku home preparing her for the worst the galaxy has to offer. Are these fighting skills augmented by the Force? The truth is, we don’t know, although another tidbit from that Halloween costume description certainly suggests there’s more to Rey than meets the eye. The blurb describes a sequence that sees Rey facing off against a room of ‘troopers and ‘saber-toting Ren Knights. Although she sounds hopelessly outgunned, the blurb goes on to hint that Rey’s enemies should be more scared of her than she is of them, saying: “It’s not about the strength of the weapon, but the strength of the warrior that wields it.”

Judging by the beat-up, jury rigged speeder we see Rey chugging through the desert on in the teaser trailer, she could also be a gifted mechanic, able to cobble together the junk she finds into working gadgets and gizmos. If this is the case, we fully expect her to MacGuyver her way out of a sticky situation at least once in the movie.

One of the most persistent rumours surrounding Rey is that she is the daughter of Han and Leia. Aside from a few vague hints from Ridley and Abrams, though, this remains unconfirmed. The character has also been referred to as Kira in various press materials, leading many to speculate that Rey is operating under an alias in order to hide her true origins.