Star Wars is a franchise known for its tragic storylines. In fact, in A New Hope alone, Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru are brutally killed by the Empire, Obi-Wan Kenobi dies as Luke Skywalker watches helplessly, and Princess Leia’s entire planet is blown up before her very eyes. In the years since, Star Wars movies and TV shows have only incorporated even more devastating character deaths.
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While many of these deaths happened outside the context of a romantic relationship, Star Wars also has a very clear trend of giving the most prominent couples in the franchise some truly brutal ends. Of all of those (many) characters who have such an arc, these five couples are the saddest overall.
5) Satine Kryze & Obi-Wan Kenobi
Alright, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Satine Kryze may never have been an official couple, but after shocking audiences with the revelation that Obi-Wan had feelings for someone, Star Wars: The Clone Wars made it clear that both Obi-Wan and Satine carried a torch for one another—that is, right up until the latter was ruthlessly slain by Darth Maul.
It would be sad enough that Satine and Obi-Wan shared a love for one another that they could never actually act upon because Obi-Wan was a Jedi, but having Obi-Wan watch as Maul killed Satine and then having her die in Obi-Wan’s arms was so much worse. Therefore, despite not technically being a couple, they make the list of top 5 saddest romantic relationship endings in Star Wars.
4) Bix Caleen & Cassian Andor
Bix Caleen and Cassian Andor were a couple added relatively late in the game, given that they didn’t appear together until Andor. In fact, many had thought that there were romantic feelings between Cassian and Jyn Erso in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, before Andor was released. Andor also started with Bix being in a relationship with someone else. Nevertheless, by Andor season 2, the two were officially a couple, and they clearly genuinely loved one another.
Right off the bat, that was bad news, as Rogue One had already confirmed that Cassian was doomed to die. What made this so much worse, though, was the fact that Bix left in the night, determined to give Cassian a chance to focus on the Rebellion and taking down the Empire. The Andor season 2 finale then made things even more painful by revealing that Bix had been pregnant at the time, and she now had Cassian’s baby, who would never know their father.
3) Leia Organa & Han Solo
Princess Leia and Han Solo have been one of the most iconic couples in Star Wars for decades, and given their legendary status as original trilogy heroes, they’re unlikely to be usurped when it comes to that title. Even so, they ended up having a tragic (and very controversial) fate. Specifically, after apparently spending years separated, Leia and Han had one final exchange before Han Solo was killed at the hands of their very own son, Ben Solo/Kylo Ren.
This was a crushing end for a couple who had captured Star Wars fans’ hearts since the 1980s, and it was made all the worse by Leia’s death in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Despite all the good that they had done and how long it had taken them to admit their feelings to one another, the couple had an absolutely gutting conclusion—and, although Leia is a Force Ghost, they will never see each other again, as Han was not Force-sensitive.
2) Hera Syndulla & Kanan Jarrus
Kanan Jarrus and Hera Syndulla may be a lesser known Star Wars couple because they only appeared together in the animated TV show Star Wars Rebels, but they are nevertheless among the best couples in the franchise. Kanan, despite being a Jedi (who therefore technically shouldn’t be in a romantic relationship), clearly loved Hera, and his love for her never tempted him to join the dark side.
In fact, he loved Hera so much that he gave his life for her and the other members of the Ghost crew, and although he had been blinded by Darth Maul earlier in the show, just before his death, the Force allowed him to see her one last time. Like Bix, Hera is also now raising a child as a single mother, as Kanan (like Cassian) had a child he never got the chance to know, Jacen Syndulla.
1) Padmé Amidala & Anakin Skywalker
Finally, Padmé Amidala and Anakin Skywalker are the single most tragic couple in all of Star Wars. Was Anakin completely in the wrong and primarily responsible for Padmé’s death? Yes. However, the two were also young and in love, and it was largely their reckless commitment to one another that led to their respective devastating ends (as Anakin’s true “end” was arguably his fall to the dark side).
The fact that the couple never got to raise their children together is also one of the most painful parts of Star Wars, only adding to the sense that this couple has the most tragic conclusion overall.
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