Actor Daisy Ridley addressed the issue of sexism from “Star Wars” fans, telling NBC’s “TODAY” show that she thinks it has been “blown out of proportion.”
Ridley, who plays Rey in the blockbuster franchise, appeared on the show Thursday and was asked about some online uproar from fans after filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy was announced as the director of the next Star Wars movie, “New Jedi Order.”
“I think my take is things get blown out of proportion and the interactions I’ve ever had with people have been nothing but wonderful and supportive,” Ridley said. “I’ve only ever been embraced. And I think we’re going to make a great film.”
It was announced last year that Obaid-Chinoy, an Academy Award and Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker, would helm the project. She is the first woman and first person of color to direct a feature film for the franchise.
It appears that some of the controversy stemmed from comments Obaid-Chinoy made to CNN about her “Star Wars” film debut, according to Slashfilm.com.
During a recent interview with CNN, she said she was “very thrilled about the project because I feel what we’re about to create is something very special.”
“And we’re in 2024 now, and it’s about time that we had a woman come forward to shape a story in a galaxy far, far away,” she added.
Some fans, Slashfilm.com reported, accused Obaid-Chinoy of focusing on the fact that she was a woman, saying that the focus should be on her trying to make a great movie. Others accused Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy of hiring Obaid-Chinoy to “inject” more feminism and “wokeness” into the film series, according to Slashfilm.
Ridley, who was on “TODAY” to promote her new movie “Sometimes I Think About Dying,” did not give any details away about “New Jedi Order,” telling the hosts that she has not read a script yet.
“But the story I’ve been told is fantastic, and I’m there, I’m in it,” she said. “It’s a very worthwhile story and I think Sharmeen’s going to do an amazing job.”
