What Happened to Captain Rex & Who Killed Him?
Undoubtedly the most iconic of all the clones that fought during the Clone Wars was Captain Rex, a captain for the 501st Legion and a strong ARC Trooper that often accompanied Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano in their missions. Of course, Rex had his own stories during the ‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars’ series and even in ‘The Bad Batch.’ So, what happened to Captain Rex, and who killed him?
Captain Rex is still alive, as far as we know. He faked his own death at the end of the Clone Wars so that he could operate in secret after the rise of the Empire. Rex eventually retired during the reign of the Empire before the Spectres recruited him to join the Rebellion. He lived through the entire Imperial era.
If there’s someone who deserves a happy ending out of all of the clones, it’s Captain Rex because he has always been a loyal clone that fulfilled his missions almost perfectly. In that regard, he was someone anyone could rely on, even when he was already quite old. So, with that said, let’s look at what happened to Captain Rex in Star Wars and what is in store for him next.
Rex is still alive
Since he was introduced in ‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars,’ Captain Rex steadily became the most popular out of all Star Wars clones. That’s because he was the clone often working alongside Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano during their missions while the Clone Wars were happening all over the galaxy. And he was one of the clones with a clear personality that made him unique.
Fiercely loyal and very friendly toward all of his comrades, Rex was as good of a clone as any clone can be. He was also a gifted battlefield captain who could perform orders perfectly but was never shy about adjusting on the fly. And we know that, as an ARC Trooper, he was one of the best fighters in the entire 501st Legion.
Of course, what happened during the final part of the Clone Wars was that Rex was promoted to the rank of commander so that he could lead a portion of the 501st Legion during the Siege of Mandalore, where he assisted Ahsoka Tano and Bo-Katan Kryze in the defeat and capture of Darth Maul. However, while the 501st was on its way back to Coruscant, Order 66 was initiated, and that was when the clones started attacking Ahsoka.
Nevertheless, thanks to Rex telling Ahsoka to “find Fives” before he succumbed to his inhibitor chip’s programming, Ahsoka was able to incapacitate him and then remove the inhibitor chip in his head so that he could function as a regular clone with his free will intact. Ahsoka, Rex, and Maul worked together to escape Order 66.
However, the ship that they were in was badly damaged because of what happened while they were escaping. Ahsoka and Rex escaped together but could not help the other clones from the 501st. Ahsoka deposited her lightsabers at the ship’s crash site to fake her death and pay tribute to the good men she lost. Meanwhile, Rex presumably operated under the guise that he was dead.
Rex continued to work actively during the Imperial reign as he went on to assist some of the clones that were about to get decommissioned by the Empire during the earlier part of the Empire’s reign. He worked together with the Bad Batch a few times during the first few years of the Empire.
Around 15 years since the Empire came into power, the crew of the Ghost found Captain Rex on a remote planet, where he and a few other clones retired. The Spectres tried to recruit him into the Rebellion because of his knowledge of different planetary systems all over the galaxy, as he had experience in plenty of different systems during the Clone Wars.
Rex initially declined the offer to join the Rebellion because he was already older and had decided that his fighting days were done. But after he and the Spectres got on the wrong side of the Empire, he decided to return to action to help the Rebels.
During the entire ‘Star Wars: Rebels’ storyline, Rex played an important role as a supporting character, especially during missions that required his expertise as an on-the-field military officer. In concept art, he worked alongside Leia Organa and Han Solo on Endor while the events of ‘Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi’ were happening. And he lived through the entire Rebellion and the rise of the New Republic.
Why did Rex fake his death?
As mentioned, Rex never died. The Imperials only thought that he died because it was presumed that everyone on the Tribunal, the ship that carried the 501st during Order 66, crashed. As such, Rex faked his death by leaving no trace of his survival.
Captain Rex faked his death to make it easier for him to operate during the earlier part of the Imperial era. Because he was already dead to the Empire, he was no longer under the supervision of the Imperial officers and was free to operate on his own while trying to learn more about the Empire and the state that the other clones were in.
As such, during the earlier years of the Empire, he was able to help the clones that were about to get decommissioned or even killed by the Empire when they already became obsolete. And that was why Rex could go on a few missions with the Bad Batch during the events of ‘Star Wars: The Bad Batch.’
Rex is set to return in ‘Ahsoka’
We all know that people are looking at the upcoming ‘Ahsoka’ series as the reunion of the many different ‘Rebels’ characters we met in the animated series. That is why ‘Ahsoka’ is often called ‘Rebels’ season 5. And there are reports that Temuera Morrison, who was the actor that played all of the clones, including Boba Fett, in live action, will be in the ‘Ahsoka’ series.
The possibility that Rex will be in ‘Ahsoka’ is very high because, out of all of the clones that survived the reign of the Empire, Rex was the one closest to Ahsoka Tano. In fact, he and Ahsoka were the best of friends because they went through hell together during the Clone Wars.
But the thing is that Rex, as a clone, ages faster than normal people. That was why he was already a somewhat washed-up old man during the events of ‘Rebels.’ As such, since the ‘Ahsoka’ series takes place somewhere between 9 to 11 ABY, Rex should already be much older than he was in the ‘Rebels’ series.
There are even teaser photos of a bearded Temuera Morrison wearing clone trooper armor. People believe that this is Captain Rex because of the blue pauldrons. But if that’s the case, he may have already become quite old. Still, because clones were basically bred for war, he may have become a washed-up old man because no more battles need to be fought.
But the fact that he will probably return in ‘Ahsoka’ means that Rex still has one final fight left before he becomes too old to fight. He can still probably fight but is no longer the same spry young clone he used to be.
So, if Rex is set to return in ‘Ahsoka,’ there’s a good chance that this will be the character’s send-off party as he might die in the series or, at the very least, live long enough until old age finally kicks in and forces him to retire. Whatever the case may be, Rex should be a welcome addition to the ‘Ahsoka’ cast that already has some of the most beloved ‘Rebels’ characters.
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