--- title: This Fun Ben Solo Challenge Is Taking Over The Internet description: You don't need to be a Star Wars fan to take part in the Ben Solo challenge canonical: https://time.com/5760530/ben-solo-challenge/ author: Melissa Locker article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2020-01-07T16:04:53.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:44:33.345Z og:title: This Fun Ben Solo Challenge Is an Undeniable Force og:description: You don't even need to be a Star Wars fan to get in on the fun og:url: https://time.com/5760530/ben-solo-challenge/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc905f1a0074ed2a9/698a0882b3fce36e2e0c6212/AdamDriverStarWars.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: Premiere Of Disney's "Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker" - Red Carpet og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: This Fun Ben Solo Challenge Is an Undeniable Force twitter:description: You don't even need to be a Star Wars fan to get in on the fun twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc905f1a0074ed2a9/698a0882b3fce36e2e0c6212/AdamDriverStarWars.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The Undeniable Force of the Ben Solo Challenge Is Here > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=5cf6d18e-1aac-4d7f-bcab-28aaa7cb81a4&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) by [Melissa Locker](https://time.com/author/melissa-locker/) ## Melissa Locker Jan 7, 2020 4:04 PM UTC  Adam Driver attends the Premiere of Disney's "Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker" on December 16, 2019 in Hollywood, California. Adam Driver attends the Premiere of Disney's "Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker" on December 16, 2019 in Hollywood, California. Getty Images—2019 Getty Images by [Melissa Locker](https://time.com/author/melissa-locker/) ## Melissa Locker Jan 7, 2020 4:04 PM UTC In [_Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker_,](https://time.com/5662458/dark-rey/) Ben Solo a.k.a. Kylo Ren, played by [Adam Driver](https://time.com/4131433/enums/), had a few key lines, some important scenes, and how people felt about his story arc really came down to their thoughts on the final installment of the latest [_Star Wars_ series](https://time.com/5657961/the-mandalorian-trailer-second-by-second-breakdown/). However, it’s one small gesture that has eclipsed the rest of his role as it somehow has taken over the internet. \[Warning: Light spoilers ahead!\] Near the end of the movie, Kylo Ren sets out on a mission to find Rey ([Daisy Ridley](https://time.com/4242637/luke-skywalker-has-a-bigger-role-in-star-wars-episode-viii-says-daisy-ridley/?iid=sr-link7)) on the Sith-controlled planet, Exegol. When he arrives, he ends up facing off against his very own Knights of Ren. As they surround him, he pulls out a lightsaber—one that does not bear the red light of a denizen of the Dark Side of the Force, but the blue light of a good guy. When the Knights see the light (literally) they know something has changed in their leader. As the truth dawns on them, Ren a.k.a. Solo gives a cheeky Ben Solo shrug and half-smile that tells his former henchmen to deal with it or not, because either way he is going to destroy them. It’s a small moment, but one that resonated with audiences. TikTok user MikeLovestheShrug saw the shrug as a challenge, one that they were more than happy to pick up. They shared a video on social media making good use of a shrug and soon enough the Ben Solo Challenge was born. > [](https://twitter.com/testtube27/status/1214127884488577024) Now people across the internet and thew world are getting in on the fun, offering up their own takes on that smug little shrug and sharing videos of them shrugging like they mean it: > [](https://twitter.com/stevenpistor/status/1214361058036592643) > [](https://twitter.com/JakeFromYavin/status/1214239832744112133) > [](https://twitter.com/pageymoon/status/1214353846019010562) > [](https://twitter.com/ObiwanxKannoli/status/1214260713260273665) > [](https://twitter.com/sulcusandjirehs/status/1214308800204877824) > [](https://twitter.com/PrinceAugustVII/status/1214293350016176128) > [](https://twitter.com/testtube27/status/1214127884488577024) While many of the people who accepted the challenge happened to have light sabers, but it’s not a requirement for getting in on the fun: > [](https://twitter.com/mr%5Fcamjaxn/status/1214282128663314432) > [](https://twitter.com/Imperial77Acade/status/1214365253674225664) > [](https://twitter.com/black%5Ftym/status/1214326626923757568) Of course, one Twitter user couldn’t help but notice that epic shrugging just might run in the Solo family: > [](https://twitter.com/KyloIsSad/status/1214356350551019521) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5760530/ben-solo-challenge/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5760530/ben-solo-challenge/"},"headline":"The Undeniable Force of the Ben Solo Challenge Is Here","datePublished":"2020-01-07T16:04:53.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-19T07:44:33.345Z","description":"You don't need to be a Star Wars fan to get in on the fun","url":"https://time.com/5760530/ben-solo-challenge/","keywords":["Newsfeed","viral","Star Wars"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc905f1a0074ed2a9/698a0882b3fce36e2e0c6212/AdamDriverStarWars.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Melissa Locker","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/melissa-locker/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc905f1a0074ed2a9/698a0882b3fce36e2e0c6212/AdamDriverStarWars.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Premiere Of Disney's \"Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker\" - Red Carpet","caption":"Premiere Of Disney's \"Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker\" - Red Carpet","creditText":"Getty Images—2019 Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5760530/ben-solo-challenge/","name":"The Undeniable Force of the Ben Solo Challenge Is Here"}}]}] ```