While the reception for Disney's Star Wars sequel trilogy has yet to improve with time, there is still considerable fan appreciation, and interest, in its lead characters: Rey and Kylo Ren. Kylo's Adam Driver has gone on to star in other films to critical acclaim, but Rey's Daisy Ridley has expressed difficulty with having been typecast and struggles with social media backlash.
Following her debut in 2015's The Force Awakens, Ridley was confronted with online criticism due to a social media post concerning gun violence. In the years that followed, her online presence dwindled before she decided to abandon social media altogether in 2019.
As to whether she will ever return to the galaxy far, far away, it seemed that Ridley wasn't ready to completely close that door; and now, it appears she's ready to reopen the other.
Star Wars' Daisy Ridley Makes a Social Media Comeback
In a recent post on Instagram, Daisy Ridley shared an image of herself sipping tea and wearing LED light-therapy glasses and announcing she's "coming out of social media hibernation" and is ready for, what she calls, her "Year of Yes:"
"Coming out of social media hibernation refreshed, recharged, and ready for what I'm calling my 'Year of Yes.'(And that's the tea.)"
Her Instagram photo can be seen below:
Interestingly enough, the official Star Wars account actually replied to the actress' post with a comment about her glasses that reads as follows:
“Those would make piloting a speeder most difficult.”
In regard to the additional action that Ridley has taken upon her return, she didn't just follow the official Star Wars account herself, but also Disney-related pages and her former Star Wars co-stars and colleagues, including Mark Hamill, John Boyega, and director JJ Abrams.
The Return of the Jedi to Social Media
Even though Disney's sequel trilogy is still relatively new to the Star Wars canon, Daisy Ridley's Rey is a significant and even historic character. After all, at this point, the only other Star Wars characters to lead trilogies have been Anakin Skywalker and Luke Skywalker.
The last fans saw of Rey was in The Rise of Skywalker where, after defeating her grandfather, Emperor Palpatine, she assumed the Skywalker name and ignited her own yellow-bladed saber.
Even though the scene served to close the trilogy and this particular chapter, it wasn't a definitive ending for Rey. Could it be that Ridley's return to social media, her caption, and the Star Wars account's response, could be evidence for her return to that galaxy far, far away?
While it's true that Lucasfilm's recent storytelling has centered on the time between the original trilogy and that of the sequel trilogy, that's all about to change with Obi-Wan Kenobi on Disney+.
Also, Lucasfilm has a number of films and projects in the works that the studio has yet to expound on; and considering Star Wars Celebration is set to take place in late May, the timing of Ridley's social media comeback is curious.
Hopefully, fans will find out for sure this coming May at Star Wars Celebration. In the meantime, Disney's Star Wars sequel trilogy is available to stream on Disney+.
