Star Wars has always been known as one of the more heroic, beloved franchises in cinematic history. While the tales of great heroes like Obi-Wan Kenobi and Luke Skywalker are joyous, they are surrounded by pain. From the fall of Anakin Skywalker in the prequels to the deaths of characters like Obi-Wan and Yoda in the original trilogy, there is a great deal of sadness and death spread throughout the Star Wars franchise.
Looking back at these deaths now, it is easy to see which have played out to be useful or help other characters in the franchise, and which were just wasted and unnecessary deaths. Either way, some of these deaths were much sadder losses for fans than others.
10 Uncle Owen & Aunt Beru
This was originally a way to provide Luke with the push he needed to join Obi-Wan and the Rebel Alliance in Star Wars: A New Hope. Looking back, especially after the Obi-Wan Kenobi miniseries, this death is actually much sadder to think about.
Uncle Owen & Aunt Beru cared so much about Luke and looked after him in secret, making many sacrifices to keep him and his identity safe from the Empire. It wasn’t enough to save them in the end, and watching the original Star Wars film back now, seeing their horrible deaths, is a much more depressing moment for the franchise.
9 Kylo Ren/Ben Solo
No matter what Star Wars fans think of the sequel trilogy, there was a strong redemption arc from The Last Jedi to The Rise of Skywalker for Kylo Ren. He managed at the very last to truly redeem himself and become Ben Solo again, saving Rey and giving his life to do so.
The few moments he is seen as Ben are glorious, as he begins to truly resemble his father Han Solo in some ways. This made his final death all the sadder, and while it isn’t higher on the list considering all the horrible things he did before reaching this point, it is still a loss that was felt by many.
8 Shmi Skywalker
This death was a huge focus for Anakin in Attack of the Clones. The loss of his mother, and the apparent saving of her before she succumbed, made for a devastating emotional loss. It was extra sad for the audience, who were able to see the first threads of Anakin’s mind snapping as he turned towards the dark side.
This loss was, for him, a major turning point, and he sought out vengeance in a very non-Jedi manner against the Tusken Raiders. Killing many of them, including the women and children, made for an even more depressing end for his mother, who most definitely wouldn’t have wanted any of that.
7 Obi-Wan Kenobi
Another character whose death has become more impactful through projects which have happened since, Obi-Wan Kenobi was originally just a short-lived teacher for Luke. Since then, through the performances of Ewan McGregor as a younger version of the Jedi Master, he has become one of the greatest characters in the franchise.
The loss he felt seeing Anakin go to the dark side, and their encounters both in Revenge of the Sith and the more recent Obi-Wan Kenobi show, make his final acceptance of death against Vader all the more depressing to watch back. While he lived on as a force ghost and got to see the resolution of Luke’s journey, this is still a hefty loss to the franchise.
6 Mace Windu
Another great Jedi Master, Mace Windu was lost before his time. Whereas Luke, Yoda, and Obi-Wan all accepted death and allowed it peacefully, Mace was betrayed by Anakin as he tried to stop the complete takeover of Palpatine in Revenge of the Sith.
Perhaps the saddest part of this loss is that Mace actually had the ability to defeat Palpatine, and he had him beaten before Anakin intervened. Everything that came after, from Order 66 to the rise of the Empire and all the hurt it caused, would have been prevented by one swing of a lightsaber had Anakin not already gone so far down his dark path. Still, fans hope that Mace Windu could return one day.
5 Qui-Gon Jinn
Building him up as a potential hero for the prequel trilogy before cruelly robbing the audience and Obi-Wan of his wisdom, Qui-Gon is still considered one of the greatest Jedi out there. His wisdom was on another level, and his loss was keenly felt by Obi-Wan, and by his potential future pupil in Anakin Skywalker.
It is unknown what way his death diverged the path of Anakin and Obi-Wan, but surely Qui-Gon’s wisdom would have shown him the possibilities of Anakin’s descent into darkness earlier. If caught, could Qui-Gon have prevented it, or at least been forewarned enough to do something more about it?
4 Rogue One’s Ending
The great sacrifice made by Jyn Erso and Cassian Andor, as well as the rest of their team, including Donnie Yen's Chirrut, finally brought the reality of how much pain taking down the Empire caused the galaxy. In decimating their super weapon, the Death Star, much of the Empire’s power was stolen by the Rebels. To look back and see how much sacrifice it took to do that is truly devastating for Star Wars fans.
Jyn and Cassian hugging each other on the beach and accepting their fate was a moment filled with emotion. Having already lost the rest of their team in various ways, the audience was left emotionally drained by the end of Rogue One.
3 Padme Amidala
Padme and Anakin’s love for her, and fear of her eventual death, is what led him down the dark path of the Sith initially. It is a horrible thing for her to have died at the end of Revenge of the Sith. Not only did it deprive Luke and Leia of a mother, but it was also the final string holding hope to Anakin’s redemption.
Once Padme died, Anakin’s loss and rage were terrible. This spurred him on to darker acts and the thought of redemption didn’t return to his mind for a long time. If Padme had lived, perhaps he could have been talked back toward stopping the Empire before it became all-consuming.
2 Han Solo
Han Solo’s loss in The Force Awakens was one of the most totally devastating moments of the entire Skywalker Saga. Returning after all those years to the screen and endearing himself to the new cast members only to be killed by his own son, gone down a path of darkness, this was hurt that didn’t go away.
Han’s murder was the key moment of the first film in the new sequel trilogy, and a defining moment that just led Kylo Ren further down his path of darkness. Such a critical juncture, and the reactions from characters like Leia and Chewbacca, made it all the harder.
1 Order 66
Order 66 is definitely the saddest moment of the entire Skywalker Saga. Fans had been waiting for the rule of the Jedi to end in disaster all throughout the prequel trilogy, and it came in heart-breaking fashion at this moment of utter betrayal which only becomes sadder through the animated series that followed.
The entire clone army simultaneously turning on the Jedi, watching that many of them betrayed out of nowhere and killed, caused a permanent shift in the order of the Universe. That sequence was perhaps the most horrible betrayal in cinema history.