When news broke that a movie starring Daisy Ridley as Rey was coming to the world of Star Wars, I was in the room where it happened. At Star Wars Celebration, we all celebrated our love for Rey when it was announced that she’s returning to the galaxy far, far away.
Of course, we quickly realized what this also meant: A woman is finally directing a Star Wars film. It isn’t the first time a movie was announced with a woman behind the camera; we were going to get Rogue Squadron at one point with Patty Jenkins helming the picture, but no longer seems to be the case. That makes Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy’s movie with Daisy Ridley at the center the first Star Wars movie with a woman behind the camera.
And, as Obaid-Chinoy said, “it’s about time.” Speaking to CNN about the movie and what we can expect from Rey’s return to the galax, Obaid-Chinoy talked about a woman coming forward to tell a story in the Star Wars franchise. “I’m very thrilled about the project because I feel what we’re about to create is something very special,” Obaid-Chinoy said. “We’re in 2024 now, and it’s about time that we had a woman come forward to shape a story in a galaxy far, far away.”
This marks the first time a woman is leading the way on a Star Wars movie. We’ve had a few women leading the charge on Disney+, with Deborah Chow directing Obi-Wan Kenobi as well as Bryce Dallas Howard on The Mandalorian. We also have Leslye Headland working as the showrunner and directing some episodes of The Acolyte. Still, Obaid-Chinoy is the first woman to tackle a Star Wars motion picture and that’s saying something in 2024.
For a franchise that prides itself on female characters, it doesn’t let women tell their stories often
I love Star Wars. It is one of my favorite things on this planet, but women aren’t allowed to take the reins on Star Wars as often as they should be. There is a change in the wind happening with Obaid-Chinoy tackling Rey’s story and Headland leading the charge with The Acolyte. That is a long time coming though. This franchise exists in the way it does because of the women behind the scenes, like Marcia Lucas, Carrie Fisher (who did uncredited screenwriting work on the original trilogy), and Kathleen Kennedy.
Letting women take charge and tell their own stories in the world of Star Wars has been long overdue, and the fact that it is 2024 and we’re just now getting these stories? That’s sad. I want to see the stories we’d tell in the galaxy far, far away.
It just makes me excited for what Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy has in store for us with Rey—because the galaxy is for all of us. Not just the boys who get to play with it.
(featured image: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
