Star Wars: Kylo Ren originally had a VERY different look

Movies require a lot of planning, and sometimes things change in the process. This is especially true for flashy-looking science fiction epics like the Star Wars movies, where the artists have to dream up a lot of unique visual concepts from scratch. The first idea might not be the one they ultimately go with.

Case in point: the early concept art for Kylo Ren, shared by artist Christian Alzmann, looks wildly different from the moody, and sometimes shirtless, character we see on screen in The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi. Check it out below!

There’s so much to unpack here. First and foremost, the grey skin reminds us of Ren’s grandfather, Darth Vader. But as drawn here, the character look much older than the one played by Adam Driver onscreen. The breathing apparatus and neck piece also remind us of Vader, which makes sense given Ren’s idolization of his grandpa.

I wonder if this version of Kylo Ren was wearing all that stuff in homage to Darth Vader or if he actually had an accident that made it necessary. Or maybe he purposefully got into an accident so he could have an excuse to wear a freaky mask.

Getting off track. The hat is kind of has a sort of religious feel to it; it looks like something an evil space pope might wear. Maybe that’s why this concept would eventually be used for the animated version of the Imperial Inquisitor on Star Wars: Rebels.

So what do we think? Was Ren’s final look a better choice? Would this version have looked the same with his shirt off?

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h/t DigitalSpy