Actor John Boyega might be joining Daisy Ridley in her new “Star Wars” film taking place fifteen years after the events of 2019’s “The Rise of Skywalker.”
Although the 31-year-old actor said that he had “made peace” with the way the Disney franchise treated his character, Finn, he has previously said that he is “done” with the franchise. But could Ridley’s return make him reconsider?
John Boyega Is Rumored To ‘Be Coming Back’ To Join Daisy Ridley In New ‘Star Wars’ Movie
On The Hot Mic podcast, John Rocha claimed that “a couple of different sources” told him that “John Boyega will be coming back” for the new “Star Wars” film, which features Daisy Ridley reprising her role as the Jedi Rey.
This film will take place fifteen years after the events of “The Rise of Skywalker” and feature Rey rebuilding a new Jedi Order after the fall of the First Order. The film will be directed by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy of “Ms. Marvel” fame.
“Lost” creator Damon Lindelof and “The Strain” writer Justin Britt-Gibson had originally been signed on to write the film; however, they parted ways with Lucasfilm only a few days after their script had been turned in. Now, “Peaky Blinders” creator Steven Knight will be taking over, although it’s not clear if he is rewriting certain parts of the script or working from scratch.
Sources also told Rocha that John Boyega and Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy have since “buried the hatchet” regarding the way Disney marketed his character, which is why he decided to return to the franchise. However, it’s not clear if this is new information or simply referring to a previous conversation.
‘Do not bring out a black character, market them to be much more important to the franchise than they are, and then have them pushed to the side’
In 2020, “The Woman King” actor put Disney on blast for the way they treated him and his character, alleging that they “knew what to do” with Daisy Ridley and Adam Driver, who played the villainous Kylo Ren and the redeemed Ben Solo, in an interview with GQ magazine.
“Do not bring out a black character, market them to be much more important to the franchise than they are, and then have them pushed to the side. It’s not good,” Boyega said at the time. “Like, you guys knew what to do with Daisy Ridley, you knew what to do with Adam Driver. You knew what to do with these other people, but when it came to Kelly Marie Tran, when it came to John Boyega, you know f*ck all.”
“So what do you want me to say? What they want you to say is, ‘I enjoyed being a part of it. It was a great experience…’ Nah, nah, nah. I’ll take that deal when it’s a great experience,” he went on. “They gave all the nuance to Adam Driver, all the nuance to Daisy Ridley. Let’s be honest. Daisy knows this. Adam knows this. Everybody knows. I’m not exposing anything.”
John Boyega Said He Had A ‘Nice, Transparent, Honest’ Conversation About Race With Kathleen Kennedy
Later that year, it seems that Kennedy tried to repair their relationship. Boyega told the BBC (via CBR) that he got a chance to discuss his concerns with how the franchise treats characters of color wth the Lucasfilm President.
“So I got on a phone call with Kathleen Kennedy and she verbally showed support and we got to have a really nice, transparent, honest conversation that is beneficial to both of us,” Boyega told the BBC that year. “I think these kinds of conversations, you can go into the realm of sounding like you’re just trying to save your own career, but what is great now is that it is a conversation that anyone has access to.”
John Boyega Is Still A Big Fan Of ‘Star Wars’ But Is ‘Good Off It’
In an August 2022 interview with Vanity Fair, Boyega said that he is still a fan of the franchise. “People always get shocked! Industry issues have nothing to do with Star Wars and me being a fan of it. I’ve been watching Obi-Wan, I’ve been watching The Mandalorian,” he said.
“I’m still forever going to be a fan of this franchise. As far as Finn is concerned? I’m good on that,” he added, saying that he would support his costars if they chose to make a return to a galaxy far, far away. As for Ridley, it seems that she is ready to return to Rey. As far as Boyega is concerned, however, he might not be ready just yet.
“At this point, I’m cool off it. I’m good off it,” Boyega said in an August 2022 interview with SiriusXM’s Tell Me Everything With John Fugelsang when asked if he would play the character again. “I think Finn is at a good confirmation point where you can just enjoy him in other things, the games, the animation. But I feel like ‘[Episode] VII’ to ‘[Episode] IX’ was good for me.”
At the time of this writing, no sequel trilogy characters but the one played by Daisy Ridley is confirmed to return in the new movie, which is expected to hit theaters in December 2025.
