I love Star Wars. I love the originals, I love the prequels, and I enjoy elements of the new Star Wars movies under Disney, despite not agreeing with every story decision or character motivation that Disney has established.
That being said, there is one element of the new Star Wars movies that bothers me arguably more than it should. That is the lack of involvement of the two iconic Star Wars droids R2-D2 and C3PO. These are the first characters introduced in the Star Wars universe and have been there from the literal beginning as well as the figurative beginning in the Phantom Menace. However these iconic characters have been sidelined in this new trilogy, and their roles mostly filled by the newer droid character BB8.
Now don't get me wrong, I don't dislike BB8, but I would have preferred if R2 and C3PO got more to do rather than Lucasfilm simply add a new droid to the mix.
Either way, through my own observations and speculation, I am beginning to think that R2 will finally get his time to shine in Episode 9. I would go so far as to suggest that R2-D2 may be the possible MacGuffin of the film.
The first reason as to why I think this to be the case is due to Anthony Daniels words during the Star Wars Episode 9 panel at Star Wars Celebration Chicago. Anthony Daniels begins by stating how the "droid fights back" in Episode 9. Now this is simple enough, C3PO could just be going on a mission because he has to. However, I'm lead to believe that C3PO's motivation for "fighting back" is connected to the fate of his friend R2. The last thing Daniels says in regards to C3PO during the panel is "I would genuinely want a best friend who cared for me as much as 3PO does. Leave it at that." (This can be heard at the 39:14 minute mark of this video)
I don't know about you, but I'm pretty confident that C3PO's best friend is R2-D2. If C3PO is not only going to be getting in on the action, but also showing loyalty to a friend, then perhaps the reason C3PO becomes involved in the action is due to his loyalty to his friend.
The next reason I believe this is a real possibility is due to a deleted scene from Star Wars Episode 7. JJ Abrams has stated that he has been working with past recordings and deleted scenes of Carrie Fischer from Episode 7, and reworking those scenes to fit the narrative. The scene in question is one where General Leia is ordering her troops to find BB8. In the scene which can be found here, Leia says "find BB8 immediately. Our future may depend on it."
A scene such as this is not only likely to be used in Episode 9 following the unfortunate passing of Fischer in 2016, but it is also likely to be manipulated slightly to fit into a new narrative. My assumption is that the words BB8 will be replaced with R2-D2. Manipulating past performances to connect to a new narrative isn't something new for this trilogy either. The voice of Sir Alec Guinness can be heard saying "Rey" at the end of the Flashback scene in the Force Awakens.
Finally there is one last reason I think the part of the main quest will be a search for R2-D2, and that is this shot from the recently released "The Rise of Skywalker" trailer.
Now normally this would seem like nothing. Maybe R2 is back at base with Leia. But why would every main character from this new trilogy be present, except for R2? Chewie is there, C3PO is there, hell even BB8 and his weird cone friend are there. So why isn't R2? Well I think he isn't present because he is what the team is searching for.
Only R2-D2 has a complete and in depth knowledge of the major events of Star Wars. He was present for the rise of Palpatine, The beginning and end of the Clone Wars, The Jedi purge, the rise of Darth Vader, the creation of the Rebellion, the fall of the Empire, Luke's new Jedi order, the First Order and the Resistance.
"But MapleSyrups, C3PO was there for all those events too!"
True, but he had his mind wiped in Revenge of the Sith. The only other character who has that much comparative knowledge of the Galaxy's recent events is Palpatine himself.
Anyways that's my theory. I think R2 will be more important than anyone currently realizes. Let me know if you agree, and if you don't let me know why.