When Disney first revealed John Boyega as a stormtrooper in “The Force Awakens,” he immediately became the target of racist comments from “Star Wars” fans protesting the casting of a Black person in the role.
Boyega was referring to his character Finn, a former Stormtrooper who played an important role in the first movie of the latest reiteration of the beloved franchise, but then largely became more of a background character as the following films focused more on Rey and Kylo Ren, played by Daisy Ridley and Adam Driver. And he said he wasn’t the only one cast aside. It was every person of color involved in the movies, including Naomi Ackie, Kelly Marie Tran and Oscar Isaac, he said. “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, when it came to John Boyega, you know f**k all. So what do you want me to say?” Boyega acknowledged that being part of the franchise was an “amazing opportunity” and a “stepping stone.
