Is Rogue One’s Jyn Erso Force-Sensitive?

Everyone remembers the scene at the beginning of «Rogue One» when Orson Krennic (Ben Mendohlson) tracks down Galen Erso (Mads Mikkelson) to force him to finish the Death Star and Lyra Erso is killed by a death trooper. But the reasoning for the Empire’s arrival in the opening moments was almost very different. «The prologue, at one point a long time ago, was going to be the Empire coming to kill the Jedi,» Gareth Edwards said to Entertainment Weekly (via Star Wars News Network). «And Jyn’s mom was going to be a Jedi.» But the filmmaker admitted it wasn’t a great idea. «The problem was that the second you make her mom a Jedi, you spend the entire movie questioning whether Jyn is a Jedi or not. Eventually, we came up with the idea that her father should have designed the Death Star. That became a stronger way into the stealing of the Death Star plans. We let go of the mother being a Jedi, and she became just a rebellious mom.» 

Edwards seemed intent on ensuring audiences didn’t get distracted by Jyn’s Jedi potential, and based on the filmmaker’s accounts, it’s clear that exploring her connection with the Force was not a focal point of this Star Wars story’s agenda. Despite the character’s death at the end of «Rogue One,» Felicity Jones told THR in 2020 that she would be up for bringing the character back: «I feel there’s unfinished business for Jyn, for sure.» If that ever happens, it will be interesting to see if Lucasfilm addresses her Force sensitivity.