12 Crazy Fan Theories About Everyone's New Favorite Fighter Pilot, Poe Dameron

Redditor montyofmusic believes Poe will step into Leia's shoes as leader of the Resistance after Carrie Fisher's tragic passing. He points to this quote from Leia:

'I honestly don't know how long we'll have to, well, resist. The rebellion went on for decades. And I'm sorry to say, probably sooner than we'd like... I'll be luminous. Maybe you are the best pilot in the galaxy. But that's not all I see in you, [Poe]. I think you're one of those rare beings who help other people fight. No one person can win a war. It's not about you, and it's not about me. It's about us.'

I don't know how/when it will all happen, but I really think this is foreshadowing Poe's eventual rise as leader of the Resistance in the wake of Leia's tragic death. Lucasfilm has respect for the character, so she won't die off-screen or be horribly written out of IX. And though it's not ideal, I think it would be fitting to give her a death that inspires our new favorite pilot to achieve his destiny – which is, in essence, what Star Wars has always been about."

Wedge Antilles was a Rebel Alliance fighter in the original Star Wars trilogy who got some screen time during dogfights. Redditor Lukesothersister believes that Poe is just a glorified and perfected version of him – from a merchandising standpoint, at least:

"Poe Dameron is our eye into the 'X-wing team/space and air battle' part of Star Wars... Basically I think Lucasfilm is trying to do with Poe what George Lucas never could did with Wedge. Basically create a hotbed for Star Wars tales, ideal for comics and novels, all that great canon foundation, WHILE having a fantastic actor ready for stand-alones. Hopefully Oscar Isaac doesn't go sour like Dennis Lawson."

The Shattered Empire comic series reveals that Poe grew up near a Force Tree, but neither it nor The Force Awakens explicitly states he's a Force wielder. Redditor Alkasan makes the argument in lieu of that revelation:

"I think Poe Dameron is a Force user since birth... because the comic itself tells the story of Poe's mother as a rebel pilot during and after the Battle of Endor. In the last issue of Shattered Empire, Poe's mother is on the brink of leaving the rebellion to take care of Poe and be with her husband. As she is in a rebel ship, R2 finds her and starts beeping to her so she follows it toward Luke and the Imperial transport that he used to escape the Death Star II.

Luke finds it interesting that he sent R2 for a pilot and it led her up to him. They both go on a mission to an Imperial research facility where the Emperor kept two little trees that were part of a tree growing inside a Jedi Temple, and Luke describes them as 'having the Force with them.' (They are also drawn as having some sort of blue glow around them).

After they escape the base, Luke says he expected one tree and not two, so he gives one to Poe's mother and the last frame of the comic is her and Poe's father planting the tree outside their new house. Poe came in contact with the tree during his life at least several times so maybe the tree could have transmitted the Force to him."

Redditor themightyheptagon is going out on a limb and making a wild guess that is entirely conjecture and yet imminently plausible:

"Because it would be a subtle tribute to the Millennium Falcon, the Star Wars franchise's most famous bird-themed spaceship.

And because no nerdy Hollywood screenwriter could ever resist the opportunity to give a man named 'Poe' a spaceship called Raven."

Redditor Alzores believes that "Poe Dameron will be the new Han Solo and fly the Millennium Falcon with Chewbacca," offering three reasons:

"1) Poe and Han are both headfirst, daring, and brave fighters. Poe is headfirst when he wants to destroy the base with extreme firepower, knowing it's dangerous, leads his team into fighting TIE fighters quite eagerly, etc. Han is very similar and tends to fly his Falcon into pretty dangerous areas, and even gets excited when escaping near death or capture. Evidence is abundant in the originals for his wild and daring behavior.

2) Poe and Han are both incredibly skilled pilots, with the 7th movie stating that Poe could fly anything. It is shown he is skilled in flying a TIE fighter and his X-wings. Han is very good at flying his ship in escaping the Empire's star destroyers in the originals.

3) Both of them attempt to take shots at the main villains, Ren and Vader respectively. Poe tries shooting Ren, but Ren uses his hand and the Force to hold the laser in place. While Han tries shooting Vader in cloud city but Vader uses his hand to block the laser shots."

Redditor Beeslo's theory is based on the comic Shattered Empire, which was an official companion story to The Force Awakens. As it's clearly canon, this Redditor believes that the reveal of Poe's parentage within actually reveals even more, namely that Rey is also a Dameron:

"It's revealed that the Imperial lab is holding two Force trees: trees that are essentially imbued with pure Force energy. Luke had heard of their existence but had only expected the one. His plan was to take the tree and plant it near a Jedi Temple that he hoped to use as a new place to train new Jedi. He gives the other tree to [a Rebel] pilot and tells her to plant it at her home. The comic ends with the tree planted outside her house. And after planting it, she happily walks home with her husband to go see her toddler son, Poe Dameron.

So yeah, the big reveal at the end of the comic is that these were Poe's parents. The Force tree being planted near him might explain why he's such a good pilot as he is strong in the Force.

And I feel this also explains why his younger sister, Rey, later shows an extreme connection to the Force, as she was conceived most likely under the presence of the Force tree."