For years John Boyega has not kept silent about what he really thought about Star Wars. The British actor, who had earned raves for Attack the Block, was stoked when he landed a plum role in The Force Awakens. He was a little less pleased about where his character wound up, feeling he’d been cast to the sidelines. But now, some three years after the final film came out, he seems to have made some peace with it all.
“For me Star Wars has made the man, in a sense,” Boyega told The Times of London (as caught by Deadline). “The experiences, the fun times, good times, ugly times, bad times, it makes you who you are as you navigate through the industry, and that has definitely been interesting.”
As for where his character, stormtrooper-turned-rebel Finn, wound up, he thought he at least ended up in a good place. “I feel like the arc that JJ tried to tie up, that’s where I feel comfortable with the release of him,” he said. “And since then I’ve been able to enjoy, as a fan, The Mandalorian and Obi-Wan Kenobi. I’m enjoying the balance of all things.”
It’s a different tone than the one he struck back in 2020, when he continued to slam the direction the series took Finn: “What I would say to Disney is, ‘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.’”
Last year Boyega praised the Star Wars team on how they handled the racist backlash against Obi-Wan Kenobi supporting player Moses Ingram, albeit while criticizing the team for not showing him the same protection when he received similar attacks.
(Via Deadline)