{"id":198305,"date":"2021-02-21T15:00:05","date_gmt":"2021-02-21T15:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gamerant.com\/star-wars-racism-disney-failed-john-boyega-finn\/"},"modified":"2021-02-21T15:00:05","modified_gmt":"2021-02-21T15:00:05","slug":"star-wars-and-racism-how-disney-failed-john-boyega-and-finn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itteacheritfreelance.hk\/wordpress\/index.php\/2021\/02\/21\/star-wars-and-racism-how-disney-failed-john-boyega-and-finn\/","title":{"rendered":"Star Wars And Racism: How Disney Failed John Boyega And Finn"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Given that it features aliens and creatures of different races and species, many would hope that Star Wars<\/em> would be above racism \u2013 after all, its films feature characters of all creeds and ethnicities working together to defeat Nazi-like empires<\/a>. Unfortunately, even being from a long time ago and a galaxy far, far away doesn\u2019t mean racism won\u2019t rear its ugly head.<\/p>\n

No one knows this better than John Boyega. Having played Finn in the recent \u2018sequel trilogy\u2019, the actor has a first-hand account of what it\u2019s like to be part of Star Wars and also BIPOC \u2013 the answer, seemingly, is not good. Despite being positioned as a major character in 2015\u2019s The Force Awakens<\/em><\/a>, Finn was slowly pushed out of the trilogy\u2019s central narrative, to the point where Boyega\u2019s role was given a fraction of the screen-time of his white counterparts\u2026 an experience that many BIPOC actors on the films shared.<\/p>\n

Related: <\/strong>Fans Want Disney To Fire Gina Carano From ‘The Mandalorian’ Over Social Media Posts <\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Speaking to Vanity Fair<\/em>, the British actor said, \u201cwhat I would say to Disney is do not bring out a Black character<\/a>, market them to be much more important in the franchise than they are, and then have them pushed to the side\u201d. Reflecting on the disparate treatment received by white actors like Daisy Ridley and Adam Driver and the BIPOC actors like himself, Oscar Isaac, and Kelly Marie Tran, Boyega told the magazine that the white characters were treated far better. \u201cThey gave all the nuance to Adam Driver<\/a>, all the nuance to Daisy Ridley<\/a>. Let\u2019s be honest. Daisy knows this. Adam knows this. Everybody knows. I\u2019m not exposing anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

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And Boyega really isn\u2019t exposing anything: racist behavior has been endemic in Star Wars communities for years now. Take Kelly Marie Tran\u2019s experience<\/a>, for example. First appearing in 2017\u2019s The Last Jedi<\/em> as Rebel pilot Rose Tico, the actor has received non-stop hate from \u2018fans\u2019 over the character\u2019s role in the film. Despite director Rian Johnson<\/a> and stars Mark Hamill and Boyega rushing to defend her, the online, racially-charged harassment received by Tran led her into a \u201cspiral of self-hate.\u201d White actors in the series have never received this level or kind of hate \u2013 this vitriol was propelled by racist views.<\/p>\n

In recent months, Boyega has become increasingly vocal online, challenging the systemic racism he faced as part of Star Wars. Moreover, last June, a video went viral of Boyega delivering an incisive speech about racism at a London BLM rally<\/a>. In the speech, the actor touches on the hate he received in his high-profile role, becoming emotional as he reflects on how Disney failed him:<\/p>\n