It's 'a very good time to be a Star Wars fan. After Disney acquired Lucasflim, the galaxy far, far away has continued to grow through the sequel trilogy, standalone films, and live-action shows like Disney+'s The Mandalorian. Generations of moviegoers have been brought up on Goerge Lucas' colorful space opera, although it looks like Finn actor John Boyega isn't happy about one part of the fandom: the divisive fans that create conflicts about the franchise.
While Disney's time with Star Wars has resulted in tons of exciting content, there's also been a trend of toxic fandom. This has seen the passionate fans of the property get confrontational about the events of the films, and even popular fan theories. John Boyega doesn't seem to understand these types of arguments, though. As the Rise of Skywalker star put it,
There’s like Reylos, for Rey and Kylo Ren. Navigating that for me has been interesting, because I love all of Star Wars. And I think that Star Wars should be a hub for imagination and it should be an opportunity for you to be able to expand on the characters how you see fit. What I don’t like is the conflict between ‘ships. I think it’s the most stupid thing in the world. This is Star Wars. It’s a big universe. Someone can be a Reylo and then you know, someone can like the fact that you know, Finn and Poe are together. Someone can like, you know, Poe and Rey together, whoever. It’s Star Wars, you know? Let’s all have fun! The conflict is when I’m like, all right, 'Let’s all calm down.' [laughs] This is Star Wars, not 'Tribal Wars!'
Touche. It looks like John Boyega wants Star Wars fans to not take themselves (and the property) too seriously. The fantasy sci-fi franchise was meant to be fun and family-friendly, so the the divisive nature of the fandom is a real bummer for John Boyega.
John Boyega's comments to Variety make a great deal of sense, as the Dark Side of Star Wars fandom has certainly emerged during his tenure as Finn. Expectations and popular fan theories have seemingly changed the landscape of the franchise, with moviegoers feeling entitled to the stories going down as they'd envisioned. And when filmmakers like Rian Johnson and J.J. Abrams use their creative power, tempers (and lenses) can flare.
Related: Even John Boyega Was 'Iffy' With Some Choices Made In Star Wars: The Last Jedi
In particular, John Boyega is referencing "ship" culture, where fans co-sign a potential romantic couple and put their support behind it. Finn has been at the center of a love triangle (pentagon?) over the course of the last two movies, so there are countless theories about who the former Stormtrooper might be interested in. While Oscar Isaac and some fans favor Poe and Finn, Boyega's character also has a connection with both Rey and Rose Tico.
Additionally, Kylo Ren and Rey also share their own intimate connection, especially after Snoke linked their minds in The Last Jedi. There are tons of romantic plot lines that J.J. Abrams can suss out with The Rise of Skywalker, and it should be interesting to see where the cards fall. Although John Boyega hopes the fans will take it all a little less seriously.
All will be revealed when Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker hits theaters on December 20th. In the meantime, check out our 2020 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
