Last night, J.J. Abrams participated in a Q&A with Chris Rock at the Tribeca Film Festival, where topics ranged from superhero films to lens flares to — inevitably — Star Wars: The Force Awakens. When asked if Rey’s parents are in the film, Abrams basically said no, sending fans into a speculation spiral as they crossed Han Solo, Luke and Leia off their lists and prepared to begin a new chapter in their theorizing. But then Abrams clarified his comments in a later statement, taking us right back to where we started with this whole crazy speculation game.

During the Q&A, a fan was compelled to ask the big question everyone involved with The Force Awakens has been asked over the last several months: Are Rey’s parents in The Force Awakens? Here’s what Abrams said:

Rey’s parents are not in Episode VII. So I can’t possibly say in this moment who they are. But I will say it is something that Rey thinks about, too.

For those keeping tabs on the potential parentage of Daisy Ridley’s protagonist, this comment was like a gift, immediately eliminating several major characters from the equation.

But when EW caught up with Abrams after the event, the director clarified his remarks:

What I meant was that she doesn’t discover them in Episode VII. Not that they may not already be in her world.

What he said and what he meant are two very different things, though, and the wording of his original response seemed pretty definitive: “Rey’s parents are not in Episode VII.” By now you’d think Abrams would know to choose his words a little more wisely as fans have been desperate to learn the identity of Rey’s parents — and it doesn’t seem like anyone is letting this question go until 2017, when Episode VIII hits theaters.

For a brief, blissful moment, Star Wars fans were under the impression that progress had been made in uncovering the truth behind this big secret before Abrams casually shattered that illusion. So, what did we learn today? Nothing.

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