John Boyega says he felt “peace” following Disney’s recent handling of racist backlash to black characters in the Star Wars universe.
The British actor said the company’s response to abuse directed at Moses Ingram, who starred in the Obi-Wan Kenobi spinoff series alongside Ewan McGregor, “fulfils my time where I didn’t get the support”.
Disney and McGregor both released public statements directly addressing the racist messages sent to Ingram and expressing solidarity with the actress.
Speaking on SiriusXM’s Tell Me Everything With John Fugelsang, Boyega said he did not feel “bitter” that the franchise had not helped him in the same way when experiencing abuse.
A personal message from Ewan McGregor. pic.twitter.com/rJSDmj663K
— Star Wars | Andor Premieres Sept 21 on Disney+ (@starwars) June 1, 2022
“Moses Ingram being protected makes me feel protected,” he said.
“It makes me feel like, ‘Okay, cool. I am not the elephant in the room.’ Because when I started, it wasn’t really a conversation you could bring up.
“You know how they went through it. It was kind of like, ‘Let’s just be silent.’ It wasn’t a conversation you could bring up.
“But now to see how blatant it is, to see Ewan McGregor come and support…It, for me, fulfils my time where I didn’t get the support.”
After Ingram first revealed the racist messages being sent to her, McGregor released a video in which he said the news made him “sick to my stomach” and that those sending the abuse were “no Star Wars fans in my mind”.
The official Star Wars account tweeted: “There are more than 20 million sentient species in the Star Wars galaxy, don’t choose to be a racist.”
Asked about how he felt, not having had the support that Ingram had, he said: “It doesn’t make me feel bitter at all.
“It makes me feel like sometimes you are that guy. And my dad taught me that.
We are proud to welcome Moses Ingram to the Star Wars family and excited for Reva’s story to unfold. If anyone intends to make her feel in any way unwelcome, we have only one thing to say: we resist. pic.twitter.com/lZW0yvseBk
— Star Wars | Andor Premieres Sept 21 on Disney+ (@starwars) May 31, 2022
“Sometimes you’re not the guy to get the blessing and sometimes you are Moses, you know, you lead the people to the mountain, but you see the destination.
“You don’t get to go in, you get others to go in. And that’s where you get your happiness from,” he said.
“And for me to see other people accepted, and then at the same time to see that the studios now are like, ‘Okay, cool.
“This is not an elephant in the room conversation. We need to support our black client.’ It’s fantastic.”