Among the ranks of the Resistance, there’s a very special bond between Leia Organa and Poe Dameron – between the General and the Captain, if you will.
It’s one we saw briefly during The Force Awakens, when Oscar Isaac’s pilot led the Resistance fleet onto Starkiller Base. But with Rey busy courting Luke Skywalker back to the fray and Finn off on a daring mission to Canto Bight, it seems Poe and Leia’s relationship is the fuel that keeps the Resistance burning bright, even as the First Order begins to mount a resurgence leading up to Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
Speaking of which, with Rian Johnson’s sequel looming large, Poe Dameron himself, Oscar Isaac, sat down with Entertainment Weekly to discuss the fearsome duo that is Leia and Poe, the best damn pilot in the galaxy.
We’ve always been very direct with each other, you know? There was just such an honesty, and it’s a really beautiful little scene that happens here between the two of them.
Much like The Last Jedi overall, the untimely passing of Carrie Fisher will only amplify Leia’s final scenes in the Star Wars saga. In short, you’d be better packing one or two tissues in time for The Last Jedi‘s opening in December.
What’s more, Isaac’s tease echoes his previous interview in which he described his Poe Dameron as Leia’s surrogate son, which is all the more poignant given Ben Solo’s turn to the dark side of the Force.
Poe is in some ways a surrogate son for Leia. But also I think she sees in him the potential for a truly great leader of the Resistance and beyond. Poe’s arc is one of evolving from a heroic soldier to a seasoned leader, to see beyond the single-mindedness of winning the battle to the larger picture of the future of the galaxy. I think Leia knows she won’t be around forever and she, with tough love, wants to push Poe to be more than the badass pilot, to temper his heroic impulses with wisdom and clarity.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi opens big on December 15th and if nothing else, it’ll go down as the longest film in the franchise.
