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There was a lot of discourse surrounding a background kiss between two female Rebels during one of the movie's celebratory closing scenes, which some fans felt paid mere lip service (literally) to the idea of LGBTQ+ representation.
And then there was the controversially tender moment between Rey (Daisy Ridley) and her former foe Kylo Ren (Adam Driver). After Kylo used his powers to channel his own life force into Rey, bringing her back from the dead, they shared a kiss before he died, vanishing to become one with the Force like his mother and uncle before him.
It was a moment which disturbed some viewers. While it was interpreted by many as a scene which finally solidified Kylo's redemption (Rey calls him by his birth name of Ben ), others felt it was still a bit problematic for Rey to be shown romantically embracing the man who used the Force to try and violate her mind in previous movies.
However, a passage from the official novelization of the movie recontextualizes the kiss as one which is not strictly romantic, but rather an expression of the complicated bond that the two characters have formed over the entire trilogy. Author Rae Carson writes:
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His heart was full as Rey reached for his face, let her fingers linger against his cheek. And then, wonder of wonders, she leaned forward and kissed him. A kiss of gratitude, acknowledgement of their connection, celebration that they'd found each other at last. But then she drew back, concern on her face. She could feel him growing cold. Ben smiled at her. He had given Rey back to the galaxy. It wouldn't atone for the darkness he'd wrought, but it was what he could do.
Now, this wouldn't be the first time the Star Wars universe has walked back a kiss. The Empire Strikes Back included a pretty long smooch between Luke and Leia, who were revealed in The Return of the Jedi to be long-lost twin siblings, casting that intimate moment in a vastly different light.
So maybe in a galaxy far, far away, a kiss on the lips isn't an overtly sexual advance. Perhaps it's closer to a hug, or a high five.