Daisy Ridley Makes Candid Admission About Life Post-Star Wars
One might think that the face of the most recent Star Wars trilogy would have no trouble landing a job, but that's appears to not be the case.
Actress Daisy Ridley — who portrayed Rey in the three Star Wars sequels movies released in 2015, 2017, and 2019 — was conversing candidly in an interview with Entertainment Weekly about her voice role in a video game when the conversation turned towards her movie career after Star Wars: The Last Jedi hit theaters last December.
Ridley dropped some nuggets about what her life has been like since she hung up the mantle on her role as Rey. While it can be a bit heartbreaking to hear, it is slightly comforting to know even stars as big as Ridley are struggling through a global pandemic. Compounded with these circumstances is the history that the Star Wars saga has in terms of launching actors' careers ... or, rather, not launching them.
Daisy Ridley inherits a dubious Star Wars legacy
After the world came to know her as "that girl in the gold bikini", Carrie Fisher stepped behind the camera for the most part, becoming one of Hollywood's most renowned script doctors. The young, chiseled jawline that preferred to be addressed as Mark Hamill was the hottest commodity on the planet when Star Wars: Return of the Jedi wrapped. Afterwards, however, his star never really took off until years later, when he became one of the most respected voiceover artists in the industry. Only Harrison Ford of the original main cast really saw superstardom.
This being the case, it perhaps shouldn't be surprising that Ridley hasn't been bombarded with offers, yet. "I was like, 'Aww! No one wants to employ me,'" she told an interviewer recently. The actress stated that she had auditioned for loads of work and couldn't land a single thing. The name recognition you'd think would have the phone ringing off the hook appeared to be doing the exact opposite for her. Ridley is taking it all in stride though, keeping her spirits up and stating "I had that moment of 'Oh my god!' and then just thought 'everything in its right time.'"
It's good to know she remembered her Jedi training, maintaining that calm confidence with which we fell in love through the newest additions to the Star Wars cinematic universe. Fortunately, Ridley remains positive, and things appear to be shifting in her favor.
Daisy Ridley's post-Star Wars career awakens
Ridley's plate hasn't been entirely empty since The Force Awakens. She had a part in Kenneth Branagh's ensemble mystery Murder on the Orient Express, and played one of Shakespeare's most tragic characters in the 2018 indie Ophelia. She also lent her voice to the character of Cotton-Tail in the CGI-live-action hybrid Peter Rabbit. Still, given how much an icon Rey has become since she first appeared on movie screens, it's a relatively thin roster of roles.
The actress sounds hopeful, though, and hints at what the future might have in store for her on the big screen. "There's one thing that I'm gonna do that's super f***ing dark," she teases. "I was like, 'Do we need something this dark?' But it's also really interesting and about memory and everything's a bit fragmented." That certainly sounds intriguing, and we're excited to watch where the young star's career takes her. A peek at her IMDB profile shows that she has some projects on the horizon, including continued voice work and a starring role in the historical drama A Woman of No Importance. Here's hoping it's just the beginning of a post-Star Wars bloom for Daisy Ridley.