Star Wars: The Force Awakens had many admirable qualities, not least for being the most progressive episode in the franchise, making Daisy Ridley’s Rey and John Boyega’s Finn the first female and black lead respectively. However, director J.J. Abrams said it won’t stop there in embracing diversity in saying fans can expect gay characters in future instalments.
“Of course!” Abrams said Thursday night at his Bad Robot HQ. “When I talk about inclusivity it’s not excluding gay characters. It’s about inclusivity. So of course.”
“I would love it,” he said. “To me, the fun of Star Wars is the glory of possibility. So it seems insanely narrow-minded and counterintuitive to say that there wouldn’t be a homosexual character in that world.”
Abrams has been vocal about the need for Hollywood to take action on becoming more inclusive and celebrating diversity, following an Oscars campaign dominated by reported boycotts and protests.
“I think we all have a hell of a lot to do, and I think it is insane to me that we still have to have a conversation about inclusivity. It’s shameful,” he told The Daily Beast (via Squareeyed). “We all need to do better to represent this world. It’s something that is important to me, and is something that we’re focusing on at [production company] Bad Robot.”
While we have absolutely no issue with any of what JJ Is saying, does’t Star Wars already have a few gay characters? Either way, we’re looking forward to what comes next…
Irwin Fletcher
I'm an LA journalist who really lives for his profession. I have also published work as Jane Doe in various mags and newspapers across the globe. I normally write articles that can cause trouble but now I write for FTN because Nerds are never angry, so I feel safe.
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