The Star Wars: The Last Jedi Cast Talks The Light, The Dark, And The Strong Female Force

December 13th, 2017 by justJENN

The second episode in the Skywalker saga continues this Friday as Star Wars: The Last Jedi hits theaters, and the excitement is palpable. Moviegoers are more than ready to see the continued adventures of Rey, Finn, Poe, and more. Fans have already readied their cosplay for characters who haven’t even made their screen debut.

Last week in downtown Los Angeles, the Star Wars press junket was in full force with the entire cast: Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Daisy Ridley (Rey), John Boyega (Finn), Oscar Isaac (Poe Dameron), Adam Driver (Kylo Ren), Gwendoline Christie (Captain Phasma), Domhnall Gleeson (General Hux), Andy Serkis (Supreme Leader Snoke), Laura Dern (Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo), and Kelly Marie Tran (Rose Tico), were joined by Director Rian Johnson, who were ready to talk about Episode IIIV.

This being the second film in a trilogy, Oscar Isaac explains how the story flows, “I think the thing as well is that often with the second chapter in a story of three, because the first one kind of sets the tone and the world and the new characters, introduced them, in the second one you don’t have to spend so much time doing that, you can really just delve into the story, into what’s happening, like John said, to the conflict of each of the characters.”

As with all Star Wars movies, there is a struggle—whether it’s between doing what’s right or wrong—or finding yourself deep within. Gwendolyn Christie explains how Star Wars has become ingrained into everyday life because of these universal battles, “I think the reason why it’s resonated with us all so deeply is that it’s our foundation story of good against evil, and where that balance is, and how we see elements of characters we’ve never seen before, things that can be unexpected. But there is something about this film and I think it’s because the world that we live in is a changing and evolving place, that it retains the simplicity of those elements, but it really resonates with what it is to follow your own human dark narcissistic tendencies, where that will take you, and I love that, and it’s done so beautifully aesthetically too.”

The force is strong with the female presence in this film. Laura Dern addressed how important this was to the Star Wars films, “I just want to pay tribute to Rian for being one of the most brilliantly subversive filmmakers I’ve ever been able to bear witness to, and in the case of the look of my character, I was moved by the fact that he really wanted her strength to first lead with a very deep femininity and to see a powerful female character also be feminine is something that moves away from a stereotype that’s sometimes perceived in strong female characters must be like the boys. I thought that was a really interesting choice to get to witness.”

Newcomer to the series Kelly Marie Tran, talked about doing her character justice, “I think that it feels like both an honor and a responsibility at the same time. I feel like from the beginning when I initially found out I got this role, I just felt like I wanted to do the whole thing justice, and I’m so excited that guys, the girls in this movie kick some butt. Every single one is so good, and I can’t wait for everyone to see it.”

Gwendoline Christie agreed on the strength shining through, “You get to see women that are not being strong just because they’re acting like men. They’re doing something else. And also you’re seeing a developed character or at least a developing character, that’s showing some complex character traits. And I’m just delighted about that. I’m delighted that something as legendary as Star Wars has decided to be modern and to reflect our society more as it is.”

See Star Wars: The Last Jedi when it opens in theaters December 15!

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Images: Disney, Jenn Fujikawa

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