Well, that was quick. After the ending of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, it felt like there would be a long hiatus from the continuation of the new trilogy's characters. Daisy Ridley — who played Rey in the recent sequel trilogy — dropped a major bombshell at this morning's Star Wars Celebration regarding the return of her character.
It appears that Rey will return in an upcoming Star Wars film directed by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, who, along with Dave Filoni and James Mangold, were announced to be directing separate Star Wars films.
Rest assured, this is not Lucasfilm/Disney making the same mistake as their recent Star Wars trilogy. Thanks to the official Star Wars website, we know that each of these films will be in different time eras — Mangold's will go back to the dawn of the Jedi, Filoni's film will focus on the New Republic, and Obaid-Chinoy's will pick up after Rise of Skywalker as Rey begins to rebuild to Jedi order. Surely each of these films has franchise potential, but it's refreshing to have a trilogy not originally planned for three different directors with no clear singular vision.
“My heart is pounding,” Ridley said as she got on stage as her name was announced. “I am so thrilled to be at Celebration with all of you in London. Thank you, Kathleen [Kennedy] and Sharmeen for having me back. I’m so happy to be continuing this journey.”
The ending of Rise of Skywalker saw Rey take on the moniker of Rey Skywalker and continue the name's legacy. In Obaid-Chinoy's new film, Rey will now be a Jedi master.
While some of Ridley's co-stars like John Boyega seemingly needed a break after the divisiveness of The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker, Ridley's recent comments did make it seem like she was ready for a comeback. As she carried the recent Star Wars trilogy along with Adam Driver, this should excite all fans of the franchise.
Since The Rise of Skywalker, Ridley tried her hand at another high-concept sci-fi flick in Choas Walking — a film starring Tom Holland and Mads Mikkelsen. It wouldn't be until this year's Sundance that Ridley had another starring role, which came in Somethings I Think About Dying (which she also produced).