Daisy Ridley is returning to Star Wars in the upcoming movie Star Wars: New Jedi Order, but even the brave Rey Skywalker still has one great fear heading into this next chapter of her character’s story. Ridley has certainly had a tough go at it as far as Star Wars is concerned, given how much controversy her character and the sequel Star Wars trilogy as a whole were met with. This past, however, has little to do with her worries about the future.
Speaking to Backstage on their podcast In the Envelope, Ridley gets candid about what she fears most when picking up Rey’s character again, well over half a decade since the conclusion of the Star Wars sequel trilogy. She wonders to herself if she even remembers how to be Rey, and how she’ll begin to tackle the challenges of time that has pᴀssed both in the real world and in the Star Wars universe. Ridley also points out that she’ll be with an entirely different cast and crew for the first time.
The first three films, we did fairly close together in the grand scheme of things. So one of the things is: Do I remember how to be Rey? It’s been a while, and time has pᴀssed in [the ‘Star Wars’] world. So there are a lot of questions about what has happened in that time, both for me and for the character; that in and of itself feels like a challenge. And then there’s the fact that I’ll be working with different actors and different filmmakers, which brings up different things. And that is always progressive, I suppose, because it’s someone else’s interpretation.
Ridley, ever the optimist, is quick to clarify that this fear is actually a challenge she’s looking forward to overcoming. She cites the potential that’s present in this specific story, and how these different factors could lead to something truly great. Ridley even embraces her true inner Jedi by citing it as a “lesson“ that she will learn.
There are so many different approaches when it’s a different team that I feel like it will already be a challenge to bridge the previous films and this one, because it’s been a long time. But it’s an exciting challenge—a great one—because every job is a ‘Who knows?’ You can have an amazing script, an amazing director, an amazing tick, tick, tick, tick, but you just don’t know what something might be. The potential is all there, but none of us knows [what will happen]. We do our work and we go home, and so much of it is in other people’s hands. It’s always a lesson in interpretation and point of view.
Ridley’s Greater Experience Will Make For A Tremendous Star Wars Return
That Enthusiasm Will Ooze Into Her Performance
There’s no doubt that, despite her hesitations about the pᴀssing of time and a brand-new cast and crew, Ridley will have a much better experience as Rey this time around in Star Wars – and that alone will make her return something incredible. Now that she’s older and knows how to handle what may come her way as she steps back into this role, Ridley can truly enjoy herself and dig even deeper into her character and the story at hand. I’m truly so relieved to see that she’s also just as eager to tackle these challenges.
Our Take On Rey’s New Jedi Order Movie
It Will Be Worth The Wait
Rey’s New Jedi Order movie, however, seems to be in an interesting place right now. Ridley’s return was confirmed at Star Wars Celebration 2023, with this movie slated to be potentially the first to bring the franchise back to the big screen, but we now know that The Mandalorian and Grogu movie will actually be leading the charge with its release on May 22, 2026. This movie has also already changed hands a few times as far as the script goes, though this doesn’t seem to be an entirely abnormal thing for Star Wars.
Whatever the case, Rey’s New Jedi Order movie will be worth the wait. Rey has become such a critical and beloved character, perhaps even one of Star Wars’ best characters, and there’s no doubt her return will be memorable for all Star Wars fans. We may not be certain when exactly we’ll get to see New Jedi Order, but whenever that day comes, it will be absolutely thrilling.
Source: Backstage
