3) Mon Mothma/General Dodonna/Captain Antilles
You can’t fail to have noticed the return of major players like Princess Leia and Artoo and Threepio, but these members of the rebellion also made less noticeable appearances.
Fans will recognize Rebellion leader Mon Mothma from Return of the Jedi, where she was played by Caroline Blakiston. Here, the character is played by Genevieve O’Reilly. In a nice bit of continuity, the actress previously played the part in Revenge of the Sith – but all her scenes were cut from the finished film.
Likewise, General Dodonna is another character from the original trilogy who is recast. Alex McCrindle played the man who plans the attack on the Death Star in A New Hope and Ian McElhinney portrays him here. Finally, Captain Antilles is mentioned at one point. He’s the unfortunate fellow who is Force-choked by Vader in A New Hope.
Most would have noticed that Bail Organa reappears here, as played by Jimmy Smits who also played the character in the prequels. In one scene, he mentions his old Jedi friend who’s in retirement and a “she” that he “trusts with his life.” These are obvious references to Obi-Wan Kenobi and his adopted daughter Leia.