The Star Wars franchise is filled with compelling characters from a multitude of diverse backgrounds. They are rebel fighters, ancient Jedi, clone troopers, smugglers, assassins, politicians, and so much more. Even the most insignificant characters get their stories told across film, animation, video games, novels, and comic books. Star Wars is all about making the most insignificant people the center of the universe’s future, so it makes sense that Disney would introduce a nameless former stormtrooper as one of the galaxy’s biggest heroes.
While the focus has been squarely on Rey in The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi, it would be a mistake to underestimate what Finn can bring to the table. He may have been relegated to comic relief in Episodes VII and VIII, but he learned some lessons and grew to be a better hero. Little is still known about Episode IX, but it is fair to assume that Finn will play an important role in the final resolution of the conflict.
Given his background as a stormtrooper with a mysterious past, and his evolution into a Resistance fighter, he also brings a lot of potential to the expanded Star Wars universe. Expect him to be seen in novels and comic books over the next few years. However, what Disney won’t touch on are the dark secrets behind his actions. Here are 15 dark secrets you didn’t know about Finn.
15 He Was Basically A Janitor
When you say that Finn is a former First Order Stormtrooper, it sounds intimidating and even a bit scary. Trained from a young and malleable age, he was part of an organization dedicated to the annihilation of free people and the establishment of absolute order in the galaxy, so it’s hard to know exactly what he is capable of doing.
The hilarious and sad thing about it, though, is that he was essentially a janitor during his time with the First Order. Though he was a Stormtrooper, he was assigned to sanitation duty on Starkiller Base. What exactly that entails is never really established, but can you imagine these guys with their armor and blasters taking out the trash? Someone has to do it, so why not the new guys?
14 He Was Almost A Space Pirate
By the time that Finn made it all the way to Takodana and Maz Kanata’s castle, he was seemingly done with the whole galactic conflict thing. Now that Rey was safely in the hands of Han Solo, he was ready to move on and hide from the First Order. His plan to keep his head down and stay safe? Join a crew of space pirates.
Finn had made an arrangement with Sidon Ithano, the pirate known as the Crimson Corsair where he would join his crew in exchange for safe passage to the Outer Rim. Sure, maybe it was to be temporary, but Finn definitely planned to become a pirate. It would have happened too if the Hosnian Cataclysm hadn’t occurred just prior to takeoff. The First Order then invaded and the rest is history.
13 He Makes A Habit Out Of Betraying People
Trained as a Stormtrooper from a young age, Finn didn’t know anything else before he ultimately deserted the First Order at the beginning of The Force Awakens. While he is primarily billed as the guy who abandoned the bad guys, he’s also tried to leave behind the Resistance on a few occasions in an effort to save his own skin.
After pretending he was a member of the Resistance, he tried to abandon the cause on Takodana by running off with some space pirates. Then, in The Last Jedi, he attempts to abandon the Resistance as the First Order is bearing down on them. It seems like not only is he a fair weather resistance fighter, he’s also something of a coward and is only interesting in saving himself.
12 He Was Abducted At A Young Age
Stormtroopers started off as the Clone Troopers of the Republic before the Empire took control of them. By the time of the original trilogy, the number of clones dwindled, so the Empire needed to recruit from outside the gene pool. The First Order did the same thing, but it also picked up the insidious practice of abducting children at a young age to train as soldiers.
Finn was taken away from his parents at such a young age that he has no memory of his actual parents or knowledge of her real name. This fact led people to believe that Finn was actually the son of Lando Calrissian, but really he was just a nameless victim in a terrible war. The worst part is that we have no idea what kind of life he could have lived if the First Order hadn’t kidnapped him.
11 The First Order Liked Him A Lot
It’s surprising to know that Finn wasn’t just a meaningless soldier to be sent out to his death in a fight against the Resistance. He actually emerged as a leader amongst his teammates when they were all still cadets, and it caused Captain Phasma and General Hux to see FN-2187 as potential officer material if he kept things going like he had shown early in his training.
Finn’s tendency to help those who were worse off them him garnered negative attention from his superiors to the point Phasma warned him not to ruin his future chances. The incident on Jakku, where he refused to follow orders and fire on the villagers essentially proved to be the final straw before he ultimately proved to the First Order that he didn’t belong.
10 Jakku Wasn’t His First Live Combat
Though it is implied that Finn saw live combat for the first time on Jakku and he couldn’t handle it, subsequent material as established that he was deployed on several other missions and saw combat one other time. The First Order sent his unit to a mining colony in the Pressylla system of the Outer Rim to restore order following interference from Republic agents.
Unfortunately, that story was all a lie and the First Order actually sent them to suppress a strike that was taking place. Captain Phasma ordered the cadets to execute the miners, but Finn quietly refused to shoot them. The mission proved to be a success, and they were recognized as full members of the First Order’s army of Stormtroopers. This allowed them to be deployed on Jakku at the beginning of The Force Awakens.
9 His Number Is A Reference To A New Hope
Finn doesn’t really have a name, or at least one that he can remember. Most of his life, he was simply known by the designation FN-2187 before Poe Dameron dubbed him to be Finn. As you might imagine, given the history of the Star Wars franchise, the number 2187 is actually a fun little reference back to the events of the original Star Wars film.
In A New Hope, Princess Leia was held in cell number 2187 on the Death Star after she was captured by the Empire. In turn, that number was a reference to Arthur Lipsett’s 1963 short film 21-87, which also inspired George Lucas to make the movie THX 1138 in 1971. If you can imagine, Finn’s very identity is a reference to a reference.
8 He Watched His Friend Lose Their Life
Remember the Stormtrooper that died in front of Finn and smeared a bloody handprint on his mask? It wasn’t exactly mentioned in The Force Awakens, but that wasn’t just a random guy who happened to be next to FN-2187 when he died on Jakku. In the anthology book Before The Awakening, it was established that this was FN-2003, a member of Finn’s group who also went by the nickname Slip.
The name was based on the fact that he was the worst Stormtrooper among them and continually slipped behind his teammates. Before Finn broke from the First Order, he continually looked out for FN-2003 and protected him when he inevitably fell behind. Finn continued to look out for him, even though everyone else believed the First Order was better off without him.
7 He Existed Before He Was A Stormtrooper
When the writing team of Star Wars: The Force Awakens was trying to determine who would be the male lead for the film, they came up with a rough outline for the character Finn. They knew they wanted him to have a unique background that has never been seen in Star Wars before, but what exactly that unique element was going to be was a mystery for a long time.
The team had played with the idea of making him a pirate or a merchant marine, but that seemed ultimately too similar to Han Solo. It wasn’t until screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan rejected everyone else’s suggestions that he declared what Finn would be. According to Michael Arndt, he told everyone “You guys, you’re not thinking big. What if he’s a stormtrooper that ran away?”
6 He Ended A Bunch Of People
Okay, so maybe they weren’t real people, but it still stands that Finn had to go through numerous simulations as a cadet with the First Order before he was sent out on active duty. According to the anthology book Before The Awakening, Finn was an exemplary Stormtrooper who led his own squad and successfully led an assault on a New Republic bunker.
As the field leader, he shrewdly sent his teammates into battle to serve as human targets in order to distract the simulated enemy. Though Zeroes and Nines became pinned down due to his orders, he was given a clear path to the Republic bunker. He threw a grenade inside and destroyed the heavy repeating blaster, and the soldiers manning it before the simulation came to an end. It’s a good thing he couldn’t do the real thing.
5 He Had To Fight His Friend
When The Force Awakens was first released, one character the internet went crazy with was the Stormtrooper who called Finn a traitor. People had their fun and named him TR-8R, but it turns out his real name was FN-2199, and he was a member of Finn’s old group of First Order Stormtroopers back when they were both trainees.
Nines, as he was known to those in his unit, must have taken Finn’s desertion personally and went after his former teammate. It would have added some level of intrigue to the Battle of Takodana outside of Maz Kanata’s castle if we knew about this in the movie, but it wasn’t meant to be. After Nines defeated Finn, he was taken out by Han Solo, so the revenge story came to an end before we even knew it happened.
4 He Nearly Lost His Mind
When Finn was sent down to Jakku to end a bunch of villagers, he was unable to carry out the order. Unfortunately for him, Captain Phasma and Kylo Ren knew he hadn’t fired a shot, so his weapon was taken away from him and he was going to be investigated. It’s lucky this all happened because it eventually motivated him to defect from the First Order, rescue Poe Dameron, and join the Resistance.
The reason he was so motivated to jump into action was the threat that Phasma would have him reprogrammed if she found out he was unwilling to end those the First Order told him to end. We don’t know the details, but that could not have been a pleasant process for him. Who knows how that would have messed with his head.
3 He Believes In Absolutely Nothing
Finn has changed sides and betrayed enough people that you can actually make the case that he doesn’t really believe in anything at all. Much like Han Solo before him, he’s much more interested in saving himself, but at least Han had a business to think about. Sure, he establishes himself firmly among the Resistance in The Last Jedi, but we know what he really believes in—women.
If you look at Finn’s motivations throughout the Sequel Trilogy, everything traces back to his interest in women. He joins the Resistance for Rey then plans to desert it to ensure Rey doesn’t come into harm. Then he meets Rose Tico and everything changes for him. Suddenly he’s super interested in helping the Resistance and it gets him the girl in the end.
2 He Almost Ruined The Mission
In The Force Awakens, the Resistance hatches a brilliant yet completely insane plan to destroy Starkiller Base. It is completely reliant on someone going down to the planet and deactivating the weapons shielding. Considering Finn was once a Stormtrooper who served on Starkiller Base, he became the obvious and most logical person to get the job done.
Unfortunately, when they get onto the planet, Finn reveals to Han Solo and Chewbacca that he was just a sanitation worker and actually has no knowledge of the shielding systems. If he hadn’t managed to take Captain Phasma hostage and turn off the energy shield, the attack would have been a failure and the fleet would have been destroyed. It cannot be forgotten how close he brought the Resistance to failure.
1 He Basically Destroyed The Resistance
In The Last Jedi, the fleet of the Resistance is decimated and most of their leadership is destroyed. Somehow the First Order has managed to track them, so Poe Dameron sends out Finn and Rose on a mission to find someone who can break the code and free them from being tracked through hyperspace. The plan ultimately fails, but things could have been a lot worse.
Finn is actually at least partially responsible for the near destruction of the Resistance. While they are on Canto Bight, they fail to find a master codebreaker, but they think they have the next best thing in DJ. After giving him all sorts of important information, he ultimately sells them out and tells the First Order that the Resistance is fleeing to Crait. Thanks a lot, Finn.
