Meet Rey and Captain Phasma of the new Star Wars movie

This content was originally posted in 7DAYS UAE website at: Meet Rey and Captain Phasma of the new Star Wars movie A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, Princess Leia lit up the big screen in science fiction phenomenon ‘Star Wars’. Smart, sassy and tough, with her distinctive hairdo and white gown, Leia was a rebel with a cause. It may seem difficult to believe in this era of Hunger Games lead Katniss Everdeen, Tris Prior of Divergent and Hermione Granger of the Harry Potter series, but Leia was a pretty revolutionary character in 1977. Tough, daring and hands on, Carrie Fisher’s character was a rare thing – a female lead who was much more than just the love interest. She wasn’t afraid to deal with the bad boys, even when they came in the fearsome shape of the towering Darth Vader, the Sith Lord who she treats with such contempt in one of the film’s early scenes. Now, nearly 40 years later, Leia returns alongside old favourites Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Chewbacca for ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens.’ But she’s not the only female we’ll be following in the Star Wars universe this time. Two major female characters will also have a significant say in how the story unfolds in this, the first of a new trilogy. Daisy Ridley stars as Rey, introduced on the official website as a ‘resilient survivor and scavenger toughened by a lifetime dealing with the cut-throats of the harsh desert world of Jakku.’ RELATED: Star Wars: The Force Awakens premiere set for Abu Dhabi Her personal journey, even just from the short promo clips we have pored over, is central to the plot. The English actor, who had to undergo five auditions in a nerve-wracking seven months to land the role – her first ever feature film – is proud to be a role model for girls, but she thinks Rey’s appeal is broader than that. She  told 7DAYS at an exclusive round-table: “I don’t necessarily think it is just girls who are going to look up to Rey. In comparison to Leia, and her mother (Queen Amidala) who were princesses and born into privilege, Rey is not. She is alone and literally scavenging for food every day. She has no one and along the way she goes on this incredible emotional journey far greater than she could ever could have imagined. And people are doing that every day: constantly exceeding expectations and she is someone people really will connect with.” The new movie, directed and co-written by ‘Lost’ co-creator JJ Abrams, has of course been shrouded in secrecy, and the rumour mill has been in hyperdrive with plot theories coming faster than the Millennium Falcon making the jump to light speed. But while we don’t know which of these have any truth, we can assume the story will be progressive. The second female actress set to play a major part in the battle between good and evil is Gwendoline Christie. Another English actor, the 37-year-old already knows a thing or two about cult followings thanks to her role as Brienne of Tarth in multiple award-winning TV smash ‘Game of Thrones’ and recent appearance in ‘The Hunger Games Mockingjay Part 2’. Intriguingly, the statuesque star will play all-armoured Captain Phasma, commander of the First Order’s legions of troopers. In short, it’s fair to assume she’ll play a bad-ass. Christie said: “Not only is she the first female villain in Star Wars, I think it is unusual for a female character to be presented this way – we don’t judge her because of the way she looks in the flesh, it isn’t about that wonderfully random series of elements that come together and cause us to look the way we look. “It is about the character and the character of the person and we respond to her due to her actions and the choices and decisions she makes and so for me it was very, very interesting to have that different sort of experience.” chris.fraser@7days.ae Read the original story at: Meet Rey and Captain Phasma of the new Star Wars movie