John Boyega accuses Disney of pushing his Star Wars character aside

[Dead2009]

https://www.itv.com/news/london/202...sney-of-pushing-his-star-wars-character-aside


John Boyega has accused Disney of marketing his character in Star Wars as an important figure before pushing him aside.

The Peckham-born actor, 28, played Finn, the franchise’s first black Stormtrooper, in the recent trilogy alongside Daisy Ridley’s Rey and Adam Driver’s villainous Kylo Ren.

However, Finn’s screen time diminished in sequel The Last Jedi and denouement The Rise of Skywalker.

Boyega told British GQ: “You get yourself involved in projects and you’re not necessarily going to like everything.

“(But) 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.”


Boyega claimed Disney, which distributes Star Wars, had given more “nuance” to his co-stars and suggested the company did not know how to treat him as a black actor.

“Like, you guys knew what to do with Daisy Ridley, you knew what to do with Adam Driver,” he said.

“You knew what to do with these other people, but when it came to Kelly Marie Tran (who played Rose Tico and has Vietnamese heritage), when it came to John Boyega, you know f*** all.

“So what do you want me to say? What they want you to say is, ‘I enjoyed being a part of it. It was a great experience…’

“Nah, nah, nah. I’ll take that deal when it’s a great experience.

“They gave all the nuance to Adam Driver, all the nuance to Daisy Ridley. Let’s be honest.

“Daisy knows this. Adam knows this. Everybody knows. I’m not exposing anything.”

 

[BrianL]

I felt like Finn got his due and a lot of focus in VIII and IX. I mean, maybe he didn't have as big of an arc as Rey, but Rey was always the "star." If anyone got a bit overlooked it was Poe. It's too bad he feels that way. Even though he said he wouldn't, maybe he should come back for a D+ show to give the character more story.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

There was a lot more they could have done with Finn being a defector. Honestly, the biggest issue with the sequel trilogy was the lack of cohesion. Even if the director was different for each film, they should have had a plan. Finn got forgotten in IX because of the loose ends JJ was trying to tie together.

 

[BrianL]

There was a lot more they could have done with Finn being a defector. Honestly, the biggest issue with the sequel trilogy was the lack of cohesion. Even if the director was different for each film, they should have had a plan. Finn got forgotten in IX because of the loose ends JJ was trying to tie together.

I would have liked to have seen Phasma again, having survived again like the rat she is, and had a real final conflict there. I feel like they tried to give Finn a new direction in IX with his connecting with Janah and all. That was a storyline that didn't get paid off. There is SO MUCH going on in IX though that I understand cuts had to be made. Maybe they could do a "Special Edition" of the ST with some extended scenes. I'd be into that!

 

[mgarbowski]

There was a lot more they could have done with Finn being a defector. Honestly, the biggest issue with the sequel trilogy was the lack of cohesion. Even if the director was different for each film, they should have had a plan. Finn got forgotten in IX because of the loose ends JJ was trying to tie together.

Cooking contest shows sometimes have a blind relay competition, where 3-4 chefs on a team each cook one dish for a fixed amount of time serially. They cannot communicate, and the job of each chef after the first is to figure out the plan, move it forward, and maybe add new touches consistent with what came before. Rian Johnson had a similar role but upended almost everything that Abrams started in VII, and that ended up killing multiple story lines, including Finn's.

I think a Rian Johnson trilogy would have been better than what we had and probably better than a JJ trilogy. But instead we had them working on a single project, but not together.

 

[BrianL]

I really don't find them that inconsistent or anything, at least not moreso than the OT is. I gave a lengthy explanation in another thread, but everything connected just fine for me and threads were picked up on. Most of what got lost in the wash is pretty much in Ep. IX alone but I get it with how jam packed that movie is.

 

[Lumpy1106]

Sorry, but you could say that about the entire ep. 7-9 run. I loved all of the characters in ep. 7. Sure, it was kindof a copy of the same death star run as the predecessor movies, but it was strong. I would say if you've never seen any Star Wars movies, just see 7.

Then there was 8 and the whole force ghost jedi thing. Sorry, but that was just bad. You'd think they'd step back and look at the reaction to 8 and maybe not do the force ghost thing in 9, but no - they doubled-down.

So no, I don't think he should take it personally. The character progression for ALL of the characters after 7 was muddled. I suggest he go back, re-watch 7, be proud of that work, and then maybe binge watch The Mandalorian (because that is how you do it in the Star Wars universe!). I'm fine if we just pretend ep 8 and 9 never happened and won't think any less of him for being a part of it (unlike some actors in ep. 2 for example - yeesh).

 

[marcyleecorgan]

If Finn and his storyline are to be a focus of the lens of Star Wars media again, it's gonna happen. People will forever see HIS face when they look at comics or read books or act out their action figure roleplay. So there is that special casting opportunity to be First!

The thing about the SuperHero movie marketing arcs (star wars included, sorry), you sign up to be that character for like, Life.
Spiderman has many Friends Batman has many Friends Bond has many Friends
You could say that Carrie Fisher was a Friend of Princess Leia, now that they have digitized her. XD

I would be interested in backstory on the Stormtroopers universe... bring more Fun with Early Finn hahaha

 

[DLgal]

My husband is a huge SW fan and this is a criticism he has had for a long time with this new trilogy. The idea of a Stormtrooper defecting is REALLY interesting and could really have been much better developed. My husband is constantly saying "Finn could have been such an amazing character, but his story was just thrown aside." No one even wants the Finn action figures. It's unfortunate.

 

[BrianL]

If Finn and his storyline are to be a focus of the lens of Star Wars media again, it's gonna happen. People will forever see HIS face when they look at comics or read books or act out their action figure roleplay. So there is that special casting opportunity to be First!

The thing about the SuperHero movie marketing arcs (star wars included, sorry), you sign up to be that character for like, Life.
Spiderman has many Friends Batman has many Friends Bond has many Friends
You could say that Carrie Fisher was a Friend of Princess Leia, now that they have digitized her. XD

I would be interested in backstory on the Stormtroopers universe... bring more Fun with Early Finn hahaha

The only thing is that I think Finn was pretty new as of The Force Awakens. I think that was his first combat assignment for sure. I guess they could follow him around cleaning Starkiller Base, but I'm not sure that would be too exciting. There are rumors of a Lando series that follows Ep IX with Jannah too, but that's like a way-off rumor. Maybe he could get in on that.

 

[Karin1984]

I read the article in a British tabloid, and there the headline and angle is more that John Boyega thinks it is because he is black.
Do you think that;s true? That if his part was played by a white actor, that the part would have gotten more exposure?

 

[BrianL]

I read the article in a British tabloid, and there the headline and angle is more that John Boyega thinks it is because he is black.
Do you think that;s true? That if his part was played by a white actor, that the part would have gotten more exposure?

It seems he feels that way. I don't really think that he got the short end by Disney - yeah, his story changes a bit but he is still featured prominently in the story and marketing, so I'm not exactly sure what he wanted there. He is right about a certain segment of the fans thouh - some disliked him in the role because of his race and I get how that could change one's perspective on it all.

 

[Karin1984]

It seems he feels that way. I don't really think that he got the short end by Disney - yeah, his story changes a bit but he is still featured prominently in the story and marketing, so I'm not exactly sure what he wanted there. He is right about a certain segment of the fans thouh - some disliked him in the role because of his race and I get how that could change one's perspective on it all.

I don't remember which franchise, but I remember reading it before that people of colour who get cast in a popular franchise have a hard time with a certain group of fans.

 

[Ben E N]

He has a decent point there, but let's be honest, Rey's "Your parents were nobodies, no wait, you're actually the grandkid of an Emporer who somehow can back to life after being blown up" storyline isn't exactly deep and full of nuances. The writing in the first movie wasn't all that good, and it just got progressively worse from there.

 

[BrianL]

I don't remember which franchise, but I remember reading it before that people of colour who get cast in a popular franchise have a hard time with a certain group of fans.

Oh, it happens. Daisy caught some flack for being female and poor Kelly Marie Tran got both ends of it and was criticised for her looks on top of that. Some fans are just toxic and it applies to all of the big "geek culture" movies. Brie Larsen was given a hard time too. I really don't get it though.

 

[dumbodrop]

Oh, it happens. Daisy caught some flack for being female and poor Kelly Marie Tran got both ends of it and was criticised for her looks on top of that. Some fans are just toxic and it applies to all of the big "geek culture" movies. Brie Larsen was given a hard time too. I really don't get it though.

That is a weak argument to hide behind. The new trilogy was horribly written with no plan no originality and Jake Lloyd and the actor who played Jar Jar got it infinitely worse from the fans than Tran or Ridgely did but it's because they are female & asian right?!! (roll eyes)

 

[BrianL]

That is a weak argument to hide behind. The new trilogy was horribly written with no plan no originality and Jake Lloyd and the actor who played Jar Jar got it infinitely worse from the fans than Tran or Ridgely did but it's because they are female & asian right?!! (roll eyes)

Hey, I never said they got it worse. Ahmed Best comtemplated suicide and Jake ended up with substance abuse and major psychological issues. It's not a contest - the bullying was always flat out wrong regardless of how one feels about the respective movies.