Bodhi Rook



"They are requesting a callsign.''" "''It's, um... Rogue. Rogue One."

- K-2SO and Bodhi Rook

Bodhi Rook was a human male from Jedha who served as a cargo pilot for the Galactic Empire during the Galactic Civil War. After defecting to the Alliance to Restore the Republic he fought alongside a group of rebels during the Battle of Scarif.

Biography
Bodhi Rook enlisted in the Empire and had aspirations to become an Imperial starfighter. He studied flight training for 2 years at the Terrabe Sector Service Academy, but due to insufficient test scores Rook did not qualify for admission into the starfighter programme. Two years later, Rook was granted the rank of Ensign and eventually cleared to work in cargo shuttles for the transport of Imperial documents and artifacts.

Rook defected from the Galactic Empire after being entrusted with an important message by Galen Erso, an Imperial scientist who worked on the Death Star project. Erso told him to seek out Saw Gerrera, a resistance fighter. Although he found Gerrera, the rebel was initially distrustful of Rook's motives, believing the message was meant to lure him into a trap. In an attempt to discover if Rook was being truthful or not, Gerrera subjected him to a torturous experience involving a creature that could sense if he was telling the truth, at the cost of a temporary loss of Rook's sanity. Ultimately, Rook successfully met with Galen's daughter, Jyn Erso, who after seeing the message sent by her father learned of the truth of Rook's defection. Following this, he joined Erso and her group, who sought the plans that would reveal a hidden weakness in the construction of the Death Star superweapon, coining the callsign "Rogue One" for himself, a name that would come to be used by the entire group.

Rook would later take part in the Battle of Scarif, wherein he remained primarily in the ship SW-0608. He contacted the Rebel Alliance fleet in order to gain reinforcements and to even the odds against the Empire. During the battle, a Shore Trooper threw a grenade at the cargo hold of the ship, near where Rook was at a console, and thus killed him instantly.

Personality and traits
Bodhi Rook was a human male with brown eyes, black hair and tan skin. Though he was a very experienced pilot, he had a tendency to be tense and hot-headed.

Behind the scenes
Bodhi Rook is portrayed by Riz Ahmed in the Star Wars Anthology Series film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Ahmed's casting in the film was first announced on August 15, 2015. As this time, the first photo of the character was released as well. His name was revealed by a preview of the Rogue One: A Star Wars Story: The Official Visual Story Guide in the Edelweiss catalogue on May 17, 2016. His first name "Bodhi" is Sanskrit and Pāli for "enlightment" or "awaking". In Buddhism Bodhi is the final enlightment that ends transmigration and leads to Nirvana.

Appearances

 * Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
 * Rogue One: A Star Wars Story novel