Since the 1970s, the world of Star Wars has captured the imaginations of its viewers and facilitated innumerable fan theories over what could possibly occur to beloved characters and locations in the galaxy far, far away, and some were spot on. With a universe as vast and diverse as Star Wars, it comes as no surprise that the seemingly endless well of content gives theorists plenty to work with. Whether it be the sudden return of a character thought dead for years or a plot twist that no one could've seen coming, Star Wars fanatics are never to be underestimated when it comes to getting into the heads of the creators themselves to predict their next move from a mile away.
Across a multitude of films, shows, books, video games, and every other form of media itencompasses, Star Wars lives and breathes to keep its viewers guessing. While some significant reveals came across as predictable and were caught easily, some of the more elaborate fan predictions have been truly impressive. Like any theory, anything will stick if given enough attempts, and all of these correct guesses can easily be written off as random luck, but it's the potential for discussion around each theory that makes Star Wars all the more interesting.
5 The Death Star's Fatal Flaw Was Intentional 
For decades, one of the biggest criticisms befalling the film that started it all, A New Hope, was how easily the unlikely heroes of the Rebellion claimed victory over the Empire at the Battle of Yavin. With the seemingly invincible Death Star being destroyed by a single, well-placed proton torpedo strike, viewers were forever left to question what could've possibly been going through the head of whoever designed it. Defiance, as it turns out.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story brilliantly fills in a near forty-year-old plot hole, with Imperial engineer Galen Erso sabotaging his own creation. While Galen may not have been who they'd guessed to conduct it, fans had speculated since the original film's inception that the Death Star's one weakness was too convenient to not be intentional. Though it wouldn't be confirmed until many decades later, fans always knew the Death Star's destruction was an inside job.
4 Rey's Powerful Lineage 
With the advent of the sequel trilogy, the number one topic of discussion surrounding all three films was what Rey's familial connection to the Force could've potentially been. From the moment of Rey's confirmed usage of the Force and the clear pattern of the sequels hearkening back to their predecessors, the constant question of who she could've been descended from never left viewers minds between the first two movies. The speculation endured for years – even after Star Wars: The Last Jedi seemingly ended the discussion.
While The Last Jedi attempted a misdirection by having Kylo Ren proclaim loud and clear that Rey's parents were nobodies and that her lineage meant nothing in relation to her strength in the Force, speculative fans saw through the deceit and hit the nail on the head with Rey's true parentage. Many Jedi could've fit the role as Rey's ancestor, but fans quickly pieced together that her relative may not have necessarily been of the light. In consideration of the dark side of the Force, Emperor Palpatine himself became the obvious answer.
3 Darth Maul Survived The Phantom Menace 
At the start of the prequel trilogy, one disappointment viewers faced was the waste of potential in the newly introduced fan-favorite villain, Darth Maul, as he was bisected by Obi-Wan and left to plummet into a bottomless pit. With his assumed death, fans played with the idea for years that Maul could still make a return. All he needed was a pair of robot legs to pick himself back up, and he'd be just as strong of an antagonist as before.
What some fans couldn't believe was that, not only were the right, but that it would make him an even better character. Season 4 of Star Wars: The Clone Wars finally saw Darth Maul's fated return as a centerpiece antagonist for its later episodes, utilizing him to his fullest potential that Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace failed to deliver. In the following years, he was cemented as a proper fan-favorite character, participating in a number of crucial events in the animated series.
2 Grogu Escaped Order 66 
Since the days when fans still knew him as "Baby Yoda," Grogu's mere existence as a fifty-year-old Force-sensitive in a post-Empire period sparked the obvious question of where he could've been during the infamous Order 66. While initially uncertain if he was even involved with the Jedi Order, recent episodes of The Mandalorian expressly confirmed Grogu's presence at the Jedi Temple itself during Anakin Skywalker's siege. While it wasn't definitively predicted who exactly would save him, fans knew that Star Wars writers couldn't resist placing Grogu right in the eye of the storm in the midst of the Jedi Purge.
