Brace yourselves, Star Wars fans – one of the newest faces of the freshly relaunched franchise says she will not consider returning to her role after Episode IX. That means that, for Daisy Ridley, Rey’s days are well and truly numbered. While she doesn’t give an indication of how she’d like to see the scavenger from Jakku bow out, Ridley’s quite adamant that, as far as Star Wars movies are concerned, three is her limit.
The actress made these comments while in conversation with Rolling Stone to promote the upcoming Star Wars: The Last Jedi. When asked if she’d be returning for more, she said:
“No…For me, I didn’t really know what I was signing on to. I hadn’t read the script, but from what I could tell, it was really nice people involved, so I was just like, ‘Awesome.’ Now I think I am even luckier than I knew then, to be part of something that feels so like coming home now. I am really, really excited to do the third thing and round it out, because ultimately, what I was signing on to was three films. So in my head, it’s three films. I think it will feel like the right time to round it out.”
As an actress, Ridley is riding the crest of an impressive, but early wave. When she featured in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, it was her biggest, most high profile role to date. Joining the legendary space saga was therefore a case of being thrown in the deep end in terms of global fame and personal recognition.
To her great credit, Daisy Ridley’s worked hard to channel that recognition into significant work outside Lucasfilm. With Murder On The Orient Express currently playing in theatres, Peter Rabbit set for a spring 2018 release, and Ophelia lining up to showcase the actress’s talents in a re-imagining of Shakespeare’s Hamlet – Ridley is certainly going about that process the right way.
The question is, where does that leave Rey? Presumably, the fact that Ridley is already vocal about her Star Wars commitment being limited to three films will have an impact on the writing of Episode IX – a process that has already had to take into account the passing of Carrie Fisher. But, let’s not get ahead of ourselves, as we still have two more films to enjoy, starring the first woman to wield a lightsaber in that galaxy far, far away.
