Last year, Daisy Ridley surprised Star Wars fans by appearing at the 2023 Celebration event and revealing that she’d be starring in a new movie set 15 years after the events of The Rise of Skywalker.
Ridley’s involvement shocked fans given she’d stepped away from social media after receiving a significant amount of hate for playing Rey, the new Jedi hero of the Sequel Trilogy who had the audacity to be a girl. There was also a significant amount of (sigh) discourse following the release of The Last Jedi. Throw in the fact that Star Wars has yet to get a single theatrical feature off the ground since Rise of Skywalker, and you had some pretty puzzled people.
However, in a new interview, Ridley opened up about why she was still excited to jump back into the franchise despite, well, everything.
Via Empire:
“I suppose I feel more like I’m owning it. I suppose I owned it the first time. Basically, I’m an adult now,” she explains. “I certainly did not feel like an adult at the time. Obviously, personally, things have changed, and professionally, I’ve had lots of other experiences, and so I definitely feel like it’s a different thing this time.” Even after three films – and a considerable amount of online discourse – Ridley still holds real affection for the world of Star Wars. “There’s just a lot of joy with me and these films,” she says. “Honestly, if I wasn’t excited, I wouldn’t have done it. It feels like a great thing to be a part of.”
Obviously, Ridley couldn’t reveal anything about the plot, which will reportedly involve the formation of a new Jedi Order, and what that even means following the events of the The Skywalker Saga. Her main concern is doing justice to this wisened iteration of Rey.
“It feels pretty amazing to be able to continue a character – like, can I even remember how to play her?” Ridley told Empire. “It’s an interesting challenge as an actor to come back to something and try to figure out what’s changed for me and what’s changed for her.”
(Via Empire)
