The moment George Lucas decided to continue the monumental tale of “Star Wars” beyond the original trilogy, he ignited a generations-long struggle between fans for ownership of the story he created. The just-released trailer for “Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker” is a sign that the franchise, now in the hands of Disney, is going to grapple with the existential crisis of the “Star Wars” story: Can we finally move on from the past of “Star Wars?” Who are all these movies, books, comics, and TV shows really for? The lack of clarity here has been a series of speed bumps for the newest “Star Wars” films, pitting the spirit of nostalgia against an insistence on the importance of moving forward.

The protagonist Rey assumed the full weight of this conflict, and “Star Wars” appears to understand this. The question of Rey’s parentage has been all that matters to fans and to the character herself; she exists in a shadow of a legend. The 2017 release “The Last Jedi,” directed by Rian Johnson, suffered through one of the largest backlashes in “Star Wars” history for dressing down the legendary Luke Skywalker to revealing weakness. It showed us that heroes are fallible, but what they represent is often timeless.