Skip to main content

John Boyega calls out Disney for how it treated his Star Wars character

Actor John Boyega criticized Disney for how it handled his character, Finn, in the Star Wars sequel trilogy films.

Boyega revealed in a GQ interview on Wednesday, September 2, that he was the only cast member who had a unique experience in filming the three Star Wars movies because of his race, and that Disney could have done more with the character but didn’t.  

Recommended Videos

“What I would say to Disney is do not bring out a Black character, market them to be much more important in the franchise than they are, and then have them pushed to the side. It’s not good. I’ll say it straight-up,” he said in the interview. 

He added that other characters played by diverse actors, like Kelly Marie Tran’s character, Rose Tico, were also sidelined in the films instead of being more prominent players. 

John Boyega in Star Wars
Disney

“They gave all the nuance to Adam Driver, all the nuance to Daisy Ridley. Let’s be honest,” Boyega said in the interview. 

Boyega added that while playing Finn was an amazing opportunity for him, it wasn’t the experience he expected it to be. He said that his experience of being a part of the franchise included death threats and people saying they would boycott the movie just because he was in it. 

Disney faced backlash from some racist fans who criticized the inclusion of Finn, a Black character, as a protagonist in the sequel trilogy. Tran’s character was also criticized as part of the divisive reaction to The Last Jedi, and her character was all but ignored in the final Skywalker saga film, The Rise of Skywalker.

Both Boyega and Tran were harassed online by especially vindictive fans, driving Tran to abandon her social media accounts.

In a tweet on Wednesday, Boyega clarified that his interview was not about putting Disney in the hot seat, but to bring attention to the issues he experienced. 

“These conversations and me sharing isn’t about a witch hunt. It’s about clarity to an anger that can be seen as selfish, disruptive and self indulgent. Obviously in hopes of better change,” Boyega tweeted. 

Digital Trends reached out to Disney to comment on Boyega’s interview. We will update this story when we hear back. 

Allison Matyus
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Allison Matyus is a general news reporter at Digital Trends. She covers any and all tech news, including issues around social…
Andor season 2 will reveal the origin of one iconic Star Wars location
Cassian Andor looks behind him while he walks in Andor season 1.

Andor season 2 will be an even bigger and more expansive space adventure than its predecessor. In a recent interview with Empire, Cassian Andor himself, actor Diego Luna, teased that the critically acclaimed Star Wars series will go to even more places and planets in its second season than it did in its first. "We move in space more than ever — the amount of planets and sets you’re going to get to see," Luna promised. "There are some familiar and new locations."

According to Andor creator Tony Gilroy, the show's sophomore season will even travel to one of the most important locations in Star Wars history: Yavin 4, the moon where the Rebel Alliance's headquarters are stationed during the first Death Star's destruction at the end of Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope. "I mean, we have to end up in Yavin, right?” Gilroy teased. "So, we’ll tell the story of Yavin. No one has quite dealt with Yavin the way we will be doing it.”

Read more
Disney has pulled a 2026 Star Wars film from its schedule
Daisy Ridley as Rey in The Rise of Skywalker.

We may have to wait a little longer for more Star Wars. Variety is reporting that Disney has pulled the Star Wars film that was previously scheduled for December 18, 2026, from its schedule. Ice Age 6 has moved into that spot in the calendar.

There was never an announcement of what this project would be, but Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy had been announced to direct a film that followed Daisy Ridley's Rey in the aftermath of the events of The Rise of Skywalker. Steven Knight was slated to be the screenwriter but left the project earlier this year.

Read more
Andor season 2 is coming sooner than a lot of Star Wars fans thought
Cassian stands by a hillside in Andor season 1.

It looks like Lucasfilm may have accidentally revealed the long-awaited premiere date for Andor season 2, and on the Disney+ mobile app, no less. Early Saturday morning, some eagle-eyed users noticed a new date attached to the bottom of the app's Andor streaming tile. The date in question promises that Andor season 2 is coming April 22, 2025.

It isn't just possible but likely that this Disney+ update was made earlier than Lucasfilm planned. Not only was it added to the streaming service's mobile app with no accompanying announcement or comment from Lucasfilm, but Disney is also in the midst of hosting its D23 Brazil convention this weekend. The event has already given fans their first look at Diego Luna's Cassian Andor in Andor season 2, and it's possible that the show's return date was being saved for D23 Brazil as well.

Read more