When Disney relaunched the film side of the Star Wars franchise in 2015 with The Force Awakens, Daisy Ridley’s Rey was one of the first new characters we met. For three movies, we watched Rey evolve from a Jaiku-based scavenger waiting to reunite with her parents, to a powerful Jedi who joined a different kind of family. And as Ridley sees it, The Rise of Skywalker gave her character the perfect ending.
We’re approaching the one-year anniversary of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’s release, but there’s been speculation about if any of the main actors from the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy could reprise their roles at some point in the future. Right now, Daisy Ridley is content with Episode IX being her final outing as Rey. When recently asked if she’d be interesting in exploring Rey’s post-Rise of Skywalker life, the actress responded:
I think for me the beauty of Episode IX is it ends with such hope and such potential. I just feel like that was Rey's perfect ending. The big battle was in Episodes VII, VIII, and IX. I think really she's probably running around the forest somewhere having a great time [following the events of The Rise of Skywalker]. I feel totally, totally satisfied with how that story finished. I just don't know what else she could do that I didn't have to do. Also, there are so many amazing characters in Star Wars, that it's sort of an amazing thing. I was watching the new episode of Mandalorian, and it's just like the places it can go beyond even where it is now is so exciting.
As you can tell from her comment to IGN, Daisy Ridley hasn’t sworn off following along with the Star Wars franchise, as she’s a fan of Disney+’s The Mandalorian. But as far as Rey is concerned, Ridley is content with how The Rise of Skywalker concluded her story and doesn’t feel the need to explore what the young Jedi is doing now that The First Order has been vanquished. That chapter of her life is closed, and she’s eager to see other corners of the Star Wars universe explored as a fan.
Daisy Ridley isn’t the only Star Wars Sequel Trilogy star who’s ok with leaving the franchise behind. Oscar Isaac doesn’t sound like he’s too keen on revisiting Poe Dameron (plus he’s about to be busy with Marvel’s Moon Knight series), and John Boyega said back in July that he was focusing on new professional endeavors, although he later acknowledged that he might be up for another round as Finn depending on the story and if Ridley and Isaac would also return. Granted, we’ve learned a little bit about what Rey, Finn and Poe have been up to after The Rise of Skywalker thanks to The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special (assuming you find those events canon) and a comic book series, but nothing beats reuniting with these characters in a live-action setting.
Considering how a little over three decades passed between Return of the Jedi’s release and when Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford reprised their respective Star Wars roles in The Force Awakens, perhaps something similar could happen decades from now with Daisy Ridley, John Boyega and Oscar Isaac. By that point, these three actors, wherever they are in their careers, might be game to explore older versions of the characters. And yes, technically that would be a continuation of the Skywalker Saga, but those extra stories could be seen as more of an epilogue.
For now though, Star Wars’ film and TV future lies away from the Skywalker Saga. The Mandalorian is in the middle of its second season, and other TV shows on the way include the Cassian Andor series, the Obi-Wan Kenobi series, The Bad Batch and a yet-be-titled female-centric series involving martial arts. As for Star Wars movies, three are scheduled foe 2023, 2025 and 2027, though no plot details about any of them have been announced. Thor: Ragnarok’s Taika Waititi is on deck to direct one of those features, and Sleight’s J.D. Dillard will also helm his own movie set in a galaxy far, far away, although as of February, it was unclear if it would be a theatrical release or be put on Disney+.
Keep checking back with CinemaBlend for all the latest and greatest Star Wars-related updates. Find out what movies are headed to theaters next year with our 2021 release schedule.
