The story of Kylo Ren, the Dark Prince of Star Wars, has come to a close with the release of Star Wars over 42 years ago, concluded an enigmatic arc for the most memorable antagonist of the sequel trilogy. Throughout the three Disney produced films, fans watched him struggle between fighting the light side and his heritage as Ben Solo and surrendering to the dark side as Kylo Ren.
Adam Driver has walked a tightrope of emotional moments, showing us the tumult Ren experiences through explosive bursts of anger, fear, and even deep sadness. From inflicting torture on innocent victims, to unleashing the fury of his dangerously unstable lightsaber in legendary temper tantrums, Kylo Ren committed some of the most violent acts in any Star Wars film. Let's look at 10 of the worst things he's done below!
TRIED TO KILL REY
Where once he hunted her to discern the location of his former master in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Kylo Ren became obsessed with Rey for several other reasons. Incredibly powerful with the Force, she exhibited the same raw potential he had shown in his days as Ben Solo.
When she refused to his side when he became the Supreme Leader of the First Order, he vowed he would turn her to the dark side, or she would die. He nearly killed her in their duel on the wreckage of the second Death Star in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, but his mother Leia reached out to him with the light side of the Force and stayed his blade.
SLAUGHTERED THE ALAZMEC
In the very opening scenes of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker we see Kylo Ren in all of his fury slaughtering robed figures in a mysterious forest of barren trees. While the mysterious planet is not named, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: The Visual Dictionary reveals it to be Mustafar, the lava planet where Anakin Skywalker dueled Obi-Wan Kenobi and where he later (as Darth Vader) built his castle.
The hooded figures are the Alazmec, "cult colonists" who were drawn to the planet for its mystical properties, and planted the irontrees to reinvigorate the barren planet's arboreal areas. They prevent him from reaching the crumbling ruins of Vader's castle, so he mows them down single-handedly.
ASSASSINATED SUPREME LEADER SNOKE
In what used to constitute a Sith right of age, Kylo Ren assassinated his former master, Supreme Leader Snoke, taking his place as the head of the First Order. This gave him authority over its military might, discrediting General Hux's leadership, and the final word on where it was directed.
As Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker revealed, it didn't even matter if Snoke was destroyed. He was a puppet of the ghoulish Emperor Palpatine, who had spent decades piecing his ruined body back together as well as a fleet to match the Empire's glory days. The worst thing Kylo could have done was kill Snoke and think he was in any more control of his destiny.
REPEATEDLY CHOKING AND BODY SLAMMING SUBORDINATES
Darth Vader notoriously Force choked subordinates that talked smack in the original trilogy, from Generals to Moffs. Kylo Ren's approach is even more savage. It was established in Star Wars: The Force Awakens that there was no love lost between General Hux, the leader of the First Order military and Kylo Ren, Supreme Leader Snoke's personal enforcer.
Hux always resented Ren's involved in his military affairs, and when Kylo Ren murdered Snoke and became the Supreme Leader, things became even more onerous for Hux. In Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Kylo used his Force abilities to usurp Hux's authority by choking him and body slamming him against the wall in full sight of his peers. Talk about painful to the ego and the body.
KILLED LOR SAN TEKKA
In his pursuit of Luke Skywalker, his former master and kin, Kylo Ren scoured the galaxy for clues. When he got word that a Resistance pilot named Poe Dameron was meeting a on Jakku named Lor San Tekka, a follower of the Church of the Force, he sent a garrison to the planet to find him.
He found both Lor San Tekka as well as Dameron, but more importantly the pilot's droid, who carried a piece of a map to find Skywalker. He killed Lor San Tekka and had his village fired on by stormtroopers, despite not being able to capture BB-8.
KILLED HAN SOLO
The point can be made that growing up in the shadow of famous parents can place an enormous emotional burden on a child, but most children don't conclude killing their parents will ease that turmoil. Ben Solo on the other hand, resentful of his heritage and of the family who turned against him for his powerful Force gifts, decided to embrace the dark side and do just that.
When his father Han Solo attempted to dissuade him from a path of darkness in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, he led his father to believe he might be capable of redemption, right before he plunged his lightsaber through his torso. Unfortunately for Kylo, the act was not cathartic and made his turmoil much worse.
ALMOST CRUSHED THE RESISTANCE
In Star Wars: The Last Jedi, there were many moments when it seemed like all was lost for the Resistance Fleet. They'd lost a bomber squadron, their fuel was running out, and First Order dreadnoughts were constantly dogging their every maneuver.
When the last of the fleet managed to limp to safety on Crait to hunker down in an old abandoned Rebel Alliance base, Kylo Ren deployed a ground assault. He would have crushed the last of the Resistance then and there if it hadn't been for the valiant return of Luke Skywalker, who distracted Ren long enough for the survivors to make their escape.
TRIED TO KILL LEIA ORGANA
Despite his intense resentment towards his parents, who struggled with the knowledge that their son could become a powerful agent of evil, Kylo Ren could never fully cut off his attachment to them. His turmoil made the process of exterminating them that much harder.
During on assault on the Resistance fleet in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, he very nearly killed his mother Leia Organa. He had his fighter's cannons aimed directly at her position, but at the last minute lost his nerve. This only made him feel weaker for not being able to sever his last ties to the light side of the Force.
DESTROYED LUKE'S JEDI ORDER
In a twisted self-fulfilling prophecy, Luke Skywalker may very well have instigated the very thing he sought to prevent. By foreseeing his nephew Ben Solo's turn to the dark side and attempting to kill him before it occurred, he caused the boy to turn on the Jedi for his betrayal.
He didn't simply take out his anger on Skywalker - he unleashed his fury on the entire fledgling Jedi Order he had attempted to resurrect. He took several of the Jedi Master's students and murdered the rest, fleeing to Supreme Leader Snoke and the First Order.
FOLLOWED IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF DARTH VADER
Had Kylo Ren only known the truth about his grandfather, perhaps he wouldn't have selected his legacy to imitate. But unfortunately, he worshiped at the altar of the Dark Lord of the Sith. He didn't seem to know the sort of man Anakin Skywalker was, only the scourge Darth Vader that the Emperor had made.
Not only did he create a masked persona very reminiscent of Vader's, but he also attempted to instill the same fear and intimidation. His pursuit of finished what Vader started, which included the annihilation of the entire Jedi Order, cost the lives of countless innocent people throughout the galaxy.
