Kelly Marie Tran Open To “Star Wars” Return

In the wake of the release of Rian Johnson’s “Star Wars: The Last Jedi,” all hell broke loose with the sci-fi/fantasy franchise.

Whereas J.J. Abrams’ “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” played it safe to the point of being criticised as simply ‘A New Hope’ re-tread, Johnson’s film took risks and in doing so divided the fanbase – some loving it, some hating it.

At the same time, frustrations, confusion, and resentment that had long been building spilled out online and there was no going back. The backlash targeted numerous people involved, and within some of that came abuse, harrasment and cyber bullying targeted at the individuals involved in the film’s making.

One target was newcomer Kelly Marie Tran who played Rose Tico and found herself subjected to so much of the vitriol that she left social media altogether for a period. Tran did return to screens, albeit in reduced capacity, for “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”.

Today, Tran is busy with multiple projects both in the can and on the way. She also hasn’t let what happened to her get her down about “Star Wars”. Speaking with CBR to promote her new film “The Wedding Banquet,” she says she’s still very open to return to the franchise:

“I have so much love and gratitude for that universe and that world…. I remain such [a Star Wars fan]. It has such a warm place in my heart, just that whole universe, and that entire experience. And I don’t know the context to which things would have to fall into place for Rose to return, but I will say that I just love that world.”

In a separate interview with Variety, she reflected on the hate she received at the time of the film’s release, saying it is a “microcosm for the social climate that we’re living in, and it’s really unfortunate”. Asked what she hopes changes in Hollywood for actors of color, she says:

“The hope is that people who are not afforded the ability, maybe, to have access to these communities of queer people or people of color, are able to see through the art that people of color and queer people are also human, and they have hopes and dreams.

We live in a world where those identities have been weaponized so that people are not able to see the bigger picture. I really just want people to recognize, it’s the system that’s the problem. Stop scapegoating people of color or queer people or anyone who’s different.

I hope that [through] the exposure and the creation of making more things about these populations, people are able to recognize humanity and maybe ask questions about the things that they’ve been socialized to believe.”

Tran’s new film “The Wedding Banquet” is in cinemas now, while “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” is available to stream everywhere on the Disney+ service.

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