Adam Driver (Kylo Ren) says he's "not doing anymore" Star Wars

The dead speak! Adam Driver's Star Wars character Kylo Ren died in 2019's The Rise of Skywalker, but there have been rumors lately that he might return. After all, we know that Disney is working on a new Star Wars movie about Rey (Daisy Ridley), one of the other main characters from the Star Wars sequel trilogy. Might Kylo not hitch a ride on that one?

According to Driver, no. "They're doing stuff, but not with me. I'm not doing any more," he said on the Smartless podcast, which is hosted by actors Jason Bateman, Will Arnet and Sean Hayes, an unlikely trio I didn't know was working together. Hayes followed up: "You're done because the character's done?" he asked. "Yeah," Driver replied.

So that settles that. Driver will never again appear in a Star Wars movie...except that this franchise brings back characters all the time, be they dead or not. Obi-Wan Kenobi died in the original Star Wars movie back in 1977, but actor Alec Guinness returned to play a Force ghost version in 1983's Return of the Jedi. Ewan McGregor played a younger version of Kenobi in the Star Wars prequel trilogy from 1999-2005, and then came back for an Obi-Wan Kenobi miniseries 17 years later. Hayden Christensen, who played Anakin Skywalker in that trilogy, is also playing the role again, appearing as recently as this year in Ahsoka.

So if Driver wants out, he's out, but I'm just saying: with Star Wars, time and money heals all wounds.

Adam Driver accepted his role in Star Wars before there was a script

Another interesting note from the podcast is that Driver says that he was offered the role of Kylo Ren before there was a script; The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams just talked him though the story.

The Star Wars sequel trilogy came under a lot of fire for its lack of consistency between movies. The Force Awakens went one director with certain plot twists, the follow-up movie The Last Jedi went another, and the finisher The Rise of Skywalker jerked it back. There seemed to be a lack of an overall vision, so I'm not surprised to hear the script wasn't done by the time Abrams and company were casting.

Sooner or later, Star Wars will be back on the big screen, but we don't know when, nor do we know which project in development will be first out of the gate. Maybe it'll be the Rey movie, with or without Kylo Ren.

To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.

Get HBO, Starz, Showtime and MORE for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels

h/t @adamdriverarchv