Is John Boyega Returning to ‘Star Wars’?
Despite his previous comments, it looks like John Boyega isn’t ruling out a return to the Star Wars universe after all.During an appearance at MEGACON Orlando this past weekend, Boyega, who played Stormtrooper-turned-Rebel Finn in Disney’s sequel trilogy, hinted at his potential return to the franchise.The moment happened when Boyega was speaking during a fan panel. When an attendee shouted, “Get Dave [Filoni] on the phone,” Boyega surprised the crowd by replying, “I actually have, actually.”Dave Filoni is the new president and chief creative officer of Lucasfilm following Kathleen Kennedy’s exit. He’s also a longtime protégé of George Lucas, with various credits across multiple Star Wars projects over the years.Boyega did not expand on his comment about speaking with Filoni. However, the actor previously shared he had a negative experience working on Disney’s sequel trilogy, indicating he was done with the franchise.How Does John Boyega Feel About Star Wars Today?In 2020, Boyega lamented his character being sidelined in 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker after Finn’s compelling character arc and apparent Force-sensitivity was initially built up in 2015’s The Force Awakens.“[W]hat I would say to Disney is do not bring out a Black character, market them to be much more important in the franchise than they are, and then have them pushed to the side. It’s not good. I’ll say it straight up,” the Attack the Block actor told GQ magazine.Boyega, who experienced racism online from some fans when he was first cast as Finn, doubled down on his disheartening Star Wars experience in the 2025 documentary Number One on the Call Sheet: Black Leading Men in Hollywood.READ MORE: How Does The Force Awakens Hold Up 10 Years Later?“Lemme tell ya, Star Wars always had the vibe of being in the most whitest, elite space. It’s a franchise that’s so white that a Black person existing in [it] was something … You can always tell it’s something when some Star Wars fans try to say, ‘Well, we had Lando Calrissian and had Samuel L. Jackson!’ It’s like telling me how many cookie chips are in the cookie dough. It’s like, they just scattered that in there, bro!” Boyega says in the film.“They’re okay with us playing the best friend, but once we touch their heroes, once we lead, once we trailblaze, it’s like, ‘Oh my God, it’s just a bit too much! They’re pandering,’” he adds.Boyega isn’t the only Disney Star Wars sequel trilogy actor who experienced flagrant racism from some fans on the internet. Asian-American actress Kelly Marie Tran, who played Rose in The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker, received so much hate for her role in The Last Jedi that she was forced to shut her Instagram account down.As for Boyega’s potential future in the Star Wars universe, it’s possible Finn could return in the unnamed Rey project currently in development. A standalone movie based on Daisy Ridley’s Jedi hero was announced by Disney back in 2023, though updates about the project have been scarce since then.Earlier this year, Ridley promised the “wait will be worthwhile,” telling ComicBook.com while promoting her horror film We Bury the Dead, “I think the story will be wonderful … I think it will be a discovery, as all roles are, of where Rey is when we meet her again.”These wonderful stars have appeared in Star Wars movies and shows, but only in parts so small they left us disappointed.
