With “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” mere days away, we had hoped the discourse surrounding the film would be about, y’know, the actual film. Unfortunately, even though we’re two years removed from Rian Johnson’s ‘The Last Jedi,’ and the horrible toxicity that follows that film’s debate, the past has come back to haunt “Star Wars.” And specifically, it appears that recent comments made by actor John Boyega about ‘The Last Jedi’ and how people associated with the film have reacted to the trolls have caused a bit of controversy.
Speaking to Variety, Boyega was recently asked about the issue of toxic fandom and how social media reacted to ‘The Last Jedi,’ specifically when it comes to the harassment that followed co-star Kelly Marie Tran. In his comments, Boyega seemingly inferred that Tran was somehow “weak” and “not mentally strong” for reacting the way she did to the comments made by fans.
Here’s his entire original answer given to Variety:
“Being in this position, you just understand the masses, how the masses think, you know. Through social media, we get to engage, we get to have fun. But at the same time, for those who are not mentally strong, you are weak to believe in every single thing that you read. That’s, you know, it is what it is. I don’t know, for me anyway, when I see that [backlash], I’m like, well, that’s actually not true. But no, it is actually not true. So it’s kind of like [shrugs] it is what it is. But to engage, to connect with the fans who otherwise wouldn’t get a day to day experience, especially during things like the press tour, and behind the scenes stuff, is always good.”
However, on Twitter, the actor clarified his comments and apologized for how it was worded.
READ MORE: John Boyega Didn’t Agree With Some Choices Made In ‘The Last Jedi’ & Felt Film Was “Iffy”
He tweeted, “In no way was I referring to Kelly when I made my comments although the interviewer mentioned her given the topic. I was really speaking from my own perspective throughout this franchise. Sometimes I’ve felt strong and sometimes I’ve felt weak. Badly worded though. I apologize.”
While Boyega apologized and said he didn’t mean to speak about Tran, specifically, it’s not a stretch to make the inference from his previous comment. The bit about being “not mentally strong” and “weak” was taken by many folks as a direct insult to Tran, who was dealing with an intense amount of racist, sexist, and overall disgusting backlash from trolls for months after the release of ‘The Last Jedi.’
The comments became so hurtful and damaging that Tran had to step away from social media altogether. She eventually returned with a well-written essay about the experience and her identity.
Thankfully, we’re only about a week away from December 20, when “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” is released. Hopefully, the film will be enough of a talking point that we can move on from this behavior that has infected fandom over the last few years.
In no way was I referring to Kelly when I made my comments although the interviewer mentioned her given the topic. I was really speaking from my own perspective throughout this franchise. Sometimes I’ve felt strong and sometimes I’ve felt weak. Badly worded though. I apologize.
— John Boyega (@JohnBoyega) December 12, 2019