Daisy Ridley Talks Emotional Fantasy Films and Han Solo’s Death in ‘The Force Awakens’

Daisy_Ridley

Star Wars actress Daisy Ridley discusses how fantasy films can help people escape from the real world. She also briefly touched on Han Solo’s death and the impact that it has on the fans.

 

 

Daisy Ridley was introduced to the world as Rey in her blockbuster debut in last year’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens. While it wasn’t the English actor’s first role, it was, by far, her most prominent.

 

Recently, Ridley spoke with TheBigIssue magazine about her Studio Ghibli film where she provides the voice of the main character Taeko. During the interview she talked about why she thinks audiences form such a strong emotional connection with fantasy type films.

“Maybe that’s because people are able to express themselves more easily when it’s tied to something that’s not totally real,” Ridley said. “When you watch something you feel removed from, it becomes that incredible thing of it feeling very close and very far away. You probably have a bigger emotional reaction than reading a newspaper and just seeing facts and figures [because] instead you see someone’s life play out, their soul, and the way they react and respond to the world around them.”

12 - Han Solo TFA

 

She also spoke about why the death of Han Solo, killed by his son Kylo Ren, had such a profound impact on Star Wars fans.

“People die so awfully every day that if you experienced every grief the whole world would be a dark, dark place. So many awful things happened last year, and Han Solo dying, which was one of the last moments of the year, is some weird way of people experiencing that. She said. “People are weighed down by awful things that are happening and what they see on the news. If everybody puts a piece of themselves into Han Solo and Han Solo dies – in the cinema, where it’s dark – you can express it and it alleviates some of the pain. His death is obviously not as important as actual lives that are lost but people probably use it as some kind of carrier for the grief.”

 

Right now, her filming for Star Wars: Episode VIII just wrapped in Ireland and she is on her way to the next shoot.

 

Check back for more Star Wars news here at SWNN.

 

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52 thoughts on “Daisy Ridley Talks Emotional Fantasy Films and Han Solo’s Death in ‘The Force Awakens’

  • May 28, 2016 at 7:55 pm
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    Daisy understands. Its as simple as that.

    • May 28, 2016 at 8:35 pm
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      Smart girl.

      • May 29, 2016 at 6:52 pm
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        Good girl, just… like… that…

  • May 28, 2016 at 8:37 pm
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    Wise words from such a beautiful and nice lady.

  • May 28, 2016 at 9:47 pm
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    Totally agree !!! beautiful

  • May 28, 2016 at 9:50 pm
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    It looks like Daisy is getting a little bit too carried away. Seriously, I wouldn’t call Han Solo’s passing one of the “many awful things” that happened last year.

    • May 28, 2016 at 11:12 pm
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      I just realized something. Leonard Nimoy and Han Solo died in the same year.

    • May 29, 2016 at 12:40 am
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      agreed- daisy can sometimes be a tad over the top. but oh well, she’s still great!

      • May 29, 2016 at 3:27 pm
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        She really is great. And in terms of her being a bit vivacious…well…she’s like 23 years old or something. She’s a dang kid. People need to let her be young and have fun.

        • May 30, 2016 at 1:46 am
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          this is true!

    • May 29, 2016 at 12:57 am
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      I don’t get what you are saying. It’s like you didn’t even read it.

    • May 29, 2016 at 4:05 am
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      I don’t know. The death of one of the most iconic movie characters of all time? In the context of the interview, I can certainly see why she said it.

    • May 29, 2016 at 11:54 am
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      that isn’t what she said. She said there were many awful things that happened last year and that Han Solo dying was a way of people expressing and alleviating some of the pain

      • May 29, 2016 at 2:26 pm
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        The fact that people need a character to express grief over other horrid things from real life’s pretty sad. Its like those morons grieving over Bowie or Prince as though they really knew them. Yes its sad that a great artist may have passed away and its a great loss, but you shouldn’t need a day off to recover like some people required.

  • May 28, 2016 at 11:11 pm
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    Han’s death wasn’t as tragic as I thought it was going to be. They made it way too easy for people to see coming. Leia telling Han to bring their son home? Han and Chewie separating to plant explosives? Han and Kylo Ren meeting on a bridge overlooking a chasm? Etc.

    Writing on the wall. The real shock for me was seeing whether or not Disney would go through with this before reuniting the old cast.

    • May 28, 2016 at 11:18 pm
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      Agreed. I believe they played it safe because they knew what kind of iconic character they were killing off.

    • May 29, 2016 at 4:09 am
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      I saw it coming, but not because anything in the movie suggested it…which…to be honest…it sorta did. These characters have aged and I think most of us figured that the new trilogy would begin to usher them out. Knowing Ford’s desire to have Solo killed in ROTJ, I sort of guessed that his reprising the role of Han Solo was contingent on his character dying. I don’t know this for certain, merely a hunch.

      • May 29, 2016 at 9:38 am
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        Yeah. A lot of fans have said the same.

    • May 29, 2016 at 5:21 am
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      Disney has no say, from my understanding. LucasFilm gets to do whatever they want.

      • May 29, 2016 at 2:53 pm
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        “Ahem” Yeah Disney is known for giving free reign to their subsidiaries. -__-

    • May 29, 2016 at 1:19 pm
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      Chewie waited about 5 minutes before firing at Kylo too as if he suddenly became retarded not seeing what would happen from miles away while the troopers around there stood around with their thumbs up their asses.

      So it wasn’t shot very well at all but hardly surprising considering who was in the director’s chair. Considering how shit Star Trek Beyond looks, I wouldn’t all be surprised if he ghost directed that too.

      • May 29, 2016 at 3:26 pm
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        “Chewie waited about 5 minutes before firing at Kylo too as if he suddenly became retarded not seeing what would happen from miles away while the troopers around there stood around with their thumbs up their asses.”

        Although you’re normally one of the repetitive and harsher critics of the new material, you’re also normally able to state your opinions in ways that sound somewhat intelligent. That can’t be said for the vast majority of the pathological whiners that visit this site.

        That being said, this isn’t one of those moments. Retarded? Come on man, you’re better than that. If Chewie wasn’t so quick to pull the trigger on Kylo Ren, perhaps it’s because he’s Han Solo’s son and he watched him grow up. And in terms of troopers standing around not getting involved, let’s not forget the idle stormtroopers that failed to get involved when Ben and Vader were facing off in the Death Star.

        • May 29, 2016 at 6:51 pm
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          I wonder two things about Chewie shooting Kylo Ren:

          1. Why didn’t it knock him off the bridge? It sent stormtroopers up in the air, and it’s not like Kylo Ren had absorbed the shot to keep himself from falling.

          2. Why didn’t Chewie keep shooting?

          • May 29, 2016 at 7:52 pm
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            1. It’s a movie.

            2. I don’t know. Who cares? Why didn’t Luke just fly his X-Wing up to the exhaust port of the Death Star and drop the torpedo in? Why navigate the trenches? Why use AT-ATs and other assault craft that walk? Star Wars isn’t that much fun if folks continually beg the question.

          • May 29, 2016 at 8:26 pm
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            1. That’s no excuse. Movies are supposed to be consistent with their internal logic. Otherwise, they could show something like Han Solo defeating Darth Vader in a lightsaber fight and say, “It’s a movie.”

            2. If you don’t care, then don’t respond. The OT is full of illogical things, too, and part of the fun is talking about them.

          • May 30, 2016 at 4:51 am
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            1. He’s cool and powerful in the Force.

            2. Because Ben Solo is practically his nephew, and he doesn’t have the heart to kill his nephew.

          • May 30, 2016 at 5:17 am
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            1. Yeah, Kylo Ren was so cool, he got his ass kicked by a newbie. More importantly, he wasn’t using the Force when he got hit with the blast.

            2. But Chewie had the heart to shoot him with a very dangerous and powerful weapon – while he was on a bridge? ^_-

          • May 30, 2016 at 5:47 am
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            1. He got his ass kicked by the newbie due to that laser blast YOU mentioned. You answer your own questions, practically. It’s kind of ironic. And the Force doesn’t always have to be used. It surrounds us and binds us and penetrates us and stuff. Just ask Yoda.

          • May 30, 2016 at 6:30 pm
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            1. Kylo Ren’s fighting ability wasn’t affected at all by his wound until the very end when the script called for it. He had no problem toying with Finn or even chasing Rey around.

            2. The reason why Kylo wasn’t knocked off the bridge had nothing to do with the Force or even logic. It only happened because he was a main character.

          • May 31, 2016 at 4:16 am
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            1. Finn has no Force ability. Duh.

            2. And Stormtroopers always miss our main characters because they’re the main characters. But no one seems to mind, then.

          • May 31, 2016 at 5:15 am
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            1. First of all, Finn hasn’t been confirmed to either be Force sensitive or not. More importantly, that’s not the point. The point is Kylo Ren fought as if he wasn’t injured. Was he limping around during the fight? Did he have any trouble swinging his lightsaber? Was he out of breath or groaning in pain WHILE he was fighting? No. The only time he pounded on his wound was when he wasn’t fighting.

            2. But that’s an established thing in Star Wars and other franchises. Henchmen don’t kill main characters. They’re lucky if they wound them, like that stormtrooper did to Leia in ROTJ. However, Kylo Ren not being knocked off his ass by Chewie’s bowcaster was inconsistent with the power demonstrated by this weapon. The film hits you over the head with how powerful it is only to change the rules. It’s not even like Kylo Ren saw it at the last second and braced himself. He was totally caught off guard, but he still stayed on that bridge.

            They should’ve used a regular blaster to do the trick. Maybe from Finn to sweeten the fight.

          • May 31, 2016 at 7:39 am
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            1. We must agree to disagree, then. I think anyone strong in the Force would be able to fight without screaming about being injured.

            2. So it’s okay when other characters/movies do it, but not TFA! Great to know.

          • May 31, 2016 at 11:05 am
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            1. It’s not about Kylo Ren screaming about being injured. It’s about showing how his injury affected his ability to fight. Why do you think the filmmakers chose to have Chewie shoot him in the first place?

            2. Knock off the sarcasm. When did anyone say it was okay for other characters or movies to be inconsistent?

          • May 31, 2016 at 4:41 pm
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            1. Sure.

            2. You did.

          • May 31, 2016 at 7:13 pm
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            1. You still haven’t answered my question.

            2. When did I say that?

          • May 31, 2016 at 10:47 pm
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            To be honest, I forgot what it was. Can we just kiss and make up?

          • June 1, 2016 at 2:13 am
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            I “Liked” your comment. Return the favor, and we’re cool. B^)

          • May 30, 2016 at 12:38 pm
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            That’s a good point – they really made a point of showing us how powerful Chewie’s crossbow was. Surprised it didn’t send Kylo flying.

        • May 30, 2016 at 6:30 pm
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          Yeah, That scene really does get to me for some reason. I’m as surprised as you actually.

          That’s what I figured at first too actually but it’s not like he recently turned to the dark side or had not killed anyone before. If a near pacifist like Obi-Wan could change his mind about Vader, I think Chewie would with him too.

          As for the troopers, The OT was pretty much full of incompetent ones due to the fact that the Empire was so bloated at that point and letting anyone join up while in TFA they were far more selective which is why their TIE pilots had few casualities and I think their troopers would have been quicker having trained from birth.

          • May 31, 2016 at 3:47 am
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            Maybe Chewie also knew Ben as a child and was atrações to him like Han and Leua were.

          • May 31, 2016 at 4:23 pm
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            I was never the best with languages but what does atracoes mean?

          • June 1, 2016 at 9:49 pm
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            vc ainda ta usando essa conta?

        • June 1, 2016 at 10:42 am
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          Agreed.

    • May 29, 2016 at 3:00 pm
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      Maybe that was on purpose. It’s not like we didn’t know that Kylo Ren was already aware of Han’s presence on Starkiller Base and even leading him out onto the bridge where a much more direct confrontation was bound to happen. Moreover, they have indicated that this trilogy is very much about the villain as it is about the hero and it’s not like Harrison Ford hasn’t pushed for this kind of turnout for his character…I don’t think it was meant to be a shock. I mean this movie was more focused on passing the torch to the next generation so to speak. I saw it coming a mile away too but I was still unsure because we had only just been introduced to this character, Kylo Ren who was already conflicted with the Light and the Dark side of the Force so it could have gone either way which to me was what made that scene exciting.

  • May 29, 2016 at 12:43 pm
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    The Han death scene still gets me everytime I watch it. Even though we all saw it coming since Ford asked to be killed in 1983, a great death scene can be hard to pull off.

    When Kylo ignites that saber into Han, its like he’s igniting it into every SW fan. The reaction of Chewy, Rey and Finn capture the moment as Han falls to his death.

    Bravo to JJ!

  • May 29, 2016 at 1:21 pm
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    I hope we get to see Rey with her hair down at some point. It made sense for her to have it up for the entire film in this one but they should change it up a bit in the next two when she’s in a more relaxed environment much like with Leia in V and VI.

    • May 29, 2016 at 6:54 pm
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      Hair down and dirty while Jedi training. Also, have her fail at some stuff! You know, make her relatable… 🙂

      • May 29, 2016 at 10:23 pm
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        So no on the chicken cutlets I take it?

        • May 29, 2016 at 10:49 pm
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          ^_-

  • May 29, 2016 at 5:55 pm
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    She made it sound like Han Solo dying should help me get through tough times. Ha. NOPE!

  • May 30, 2016 at 4:17 am
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    Wow, she’s really thought this through & hits the nail on the head. What an amazing human being! JJ really knows how to cast a friggin’ movie 😉

  • May 30, 2016 at 4:48 am
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    Daisy is so cool. BE MY WIFE!

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