John Boyega Now “Comfortable” With Finn’s Portrayal in the Sequel Trilogy
In a recent interview with The Times of London, John Boyega reflected more positively upon his role as Finn in the sequel trilogy films. His history with the franchise so far has had its ups and downs. One event in particular stands out: when Boyega called out Disney’s poor treatment of Finn and his role in the trilogy.
Speaking in 2020, Boyega had this to say:
“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.’”
Boyega has had time to come to terms with what happened, and it seems he now looks at those events differently:
“For me Star Wars has made the man, in a sense… 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. I feel like the arc that JJ tried to tie up, that’s where I feel comfortable with the release of him. 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.”
Boyega has moved on after seeing how other actors have been treated by Disney’s handling of racism inside the fandom since his disappointing experience. He referred to Moses Ingram, recently seen in the Disney Plus Series Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Could this mean that John Boyega might now be open to revisiting the Star Wars franchise if the opportunity presented itself? We can only hope. In the meantime, you can catch Boyega in Breaking, where he portrayed the real-life marine veteran Brian Brown-Easley, and The Woman King (as King Ghezo of Dahomey). Boyega will return for Attack the Block 2, the sequel to the 2011 sci-fi comedy that put him on the map, currently in pre-production. But before that, he’ll be seen starring in Juel Taylor’s They Cloned Tyrone alongside Jamie Foxx and Teyonah Parris.
Meet Julie Gray, a passionate pop culture writer from Aotearoa, New Zealand. A lifelong Star Wars fan, her love for the franchise runs deep, with Luke Skywalker being her all-time favourite character and Anakin Skywalker coming in as a close second. Her outlook on the Star Wars universe is simple yet powerful - "All Star Wars is good Star Wars", a true testament to her undying love for this iconic franchise.
