General Armitage Hux is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise. First introduced in the 2015 film ', he is portrayed by Irish actor Domhnall Gleeson. He is an unpleasant military commander in a power struggle with Kylo Ren for the First Order leadership, and being exceeded only by Supreme Leader Snoke. The character first featured in The Force Awakens media and merchandising, and returned in the film's sequels, ' and .
Character
Hux was born on Arkanis and was rumored to have been sired from an affair between his father, Commandant Brendol Hux of the Arkanis Academy, and a kitchen worker. Hux and his father are rescued from the Academy when it is about to fall to the New Republic near the end of the Galactic Civil War. When the war ends with the Battle of Jakku and the signing of the Galactic Concordance, the young Hux and his father are part of the Imperial Navy forces who retreat into the Unknown Regions. These forces later emerge as the First Order. The Republic believes that the First Order is just an unimportant band of Imperial holdouts, but Hux's training methods forge a formidable military that effectively overthrows the Republic and turns the galaxy into a dictatorship even more brutal than the Galactic Empire of the original Star Wars trilogy. He serves as the right hand of the First Order's Supreme Leader Snoke, second in authority only to Kylo Ren, with whom he has a fierce rivalry. He is dedicated to destroying the Resistance, an army that grew out of the Rebel Alliance and is led by General Leia Organa. Hux believes that the Republic is a threat to galactic stability, and that it is his destiny to rule the galaxy.
Appearances
Film
''The Force Awakens'' (2015)
Hux first appears in The Force Awakens as a high-ranking general in the First Order. Hux is part of a mission to Jakku to recover a map to Luke Skywalker, the last Jedi. To destroy the Resistance, Snoke allows Hux to use the Starkiller superweapon against the Republic's capital world of Hosnian Prime, destroying the planet and killing billions of people. The Resistance is left without military support from the Republic, so Hux soon turns the Starkiller weapon towards the Resistance base on D'Qar. Before he can destroy the planet, however, an attack squadron led by Resistance Commander Poe Dameron, with ground support from Han Solo, former stormtrooper Finn, and the Jakku scavenger Rey, destroys Starkiller Base, forcing Hux, some of his troops, and a defeated Ren to flee the planet.
''The Last Jedi'' (2017)
Hux appears in as the primary general reporting directly to Supreme Leader Snoke. He attempts to respond to a transmission from Dameron, who mocks him by asking for a General "Hugs" and calling him "pasty". Hux then leads the subsequent battle, during which both sides sustain heavy losses. He also oversees the bombardment of the remaining three ships of the Resistance, then on the lifeboats. When he discovers that Ren has murdered Snoke, he initially protests Ren's claim to be the new Supreme Leader, but is swiftly persuaded otherwise when Ren uses the Force to choke him, proclaiming "Long live the Supreme Leader." At the end of the film, he accompanies Ren to the planet Crait in their attempt to finish off the Resistance. When Ren orders his men to fire on Luke, Hux admonishes him to focus on the escaping Resistance members; Ren silences him by using the Force to slam him into a wall, knocking him out. Hux is seen again when Ren and his troops invade the Resistance base and find it empty.
''The Rise of Skywalker'' (2019)
By the time of , Hux has become embittered because of the lack of respect he receives and his rivalry with Allegiant General Pryde, who constantly undermines Hux while vying for his job. Hux is later revealed to have been a spy supplying information to the Resistance in order to undermine Ren and take his place as Supreme Leader ; he tells Finn, "I don't care if you win. I need Kylo Ren to lose." Hux helps Poe, Rey, and Finn escape Ren's Resurgent-class Star Destroyer Steadfast and has Finn shoot him in the leg so he can feign an effort to stop them. However, he is killed by Pryde after the latter realizes Hux's treason through his cover story. A scene deleted from the film featured Hux and Pryde in the opening action sequence with Kylo Ren.
Other media
Hux appears via hologram in the first season finale of the animated series '. The episode takes place at the same time as The Force Awakens and depicts First Order troops watching a transmission of Hux give his speech and the subsequent firing of Starkiller Base. He appears, in person, in the eleventh episode "Station to Station" of the season two of Star Wars Resistance and in hologram in the final of season two "The Escape" along with Kylo Ren. Hux appears in two theme park attractions, Star Tours – The Adventures Continue and with Gleeson reprising the role in each. Some details about the backstory of Hux and his father Brendol appear in the 2016 novel ' by Chuck Wendig. Hux and Brendol are also characters in the 2017 novel ' by Delilah S. Dawson. Hux also is a playable Dark Side squad leader in an update to the mobileMOBA', released in late 2017.
Reception
In his review of The Force Awakens, Henry Barnes of The Guardian wrote that Gleeson's "screechy pseudo-Nazi role" as General Hux is "not as colourful or as nuanced" as Adam Driver's part as Kylo Ren, "but – given he's a functionary – Gleeson certainly makes an impression." Reviewing Hux and his role in the film, David Rutz of The Washington Free Beacon wrote that while Hux is portrayed as a villain, he is shown to be a capable general and "a committed soldier to his cause with laser-like focus on achieving the First Order's ends." However, after the release of The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker, some criticism was levelled at the use of the character to provide comic relief, particularly after having being introduced as a serious villain. The character's story arc was also discussed. The revelation that he was a Resistance spy and his subsequent "unceremonious" death was subject to some criticism.
