John Boyega Thinks The Last Jedi Is His Worst Star Wars Movie
The first time I watched "Star Wars: The Last Jedi," I was impressed by just how much writer/director Rian Johnson had packed into the film. It felt like a declarative statement on "Star Wars" — as if Johnson poured every idea and thought he had about the franchise into the story, just in case he never got to make another "Star Wars" film (which he might not!). Since then, however, I've been loath to talk about the film, and I suspect everyone reading this knows why.
Here's the thing: I still think "The Last Jedi" is great, but, like any film, it has its shortcomings. The problem is, I find it near impossible to discuss the film's flaws online without kicking the hornets' nest and starting yet another exhausting debate about, say, Luke's arc in the story (it's one of the best parts of the entire film, folks). For that matter, I'm hesitant to criticize "The Last Jedi" at all, lest I encourage more people to bash it for reasons I completely disagree with.
Thankfully, John Boyega has no such reservations. In what should come as little surprise to those familiar with the actor's previous comments about the franchise, Boyega has admitted that he thinks "The Last Jedi" is the worst "Star Wars" film he's appeared in thus far. Since we're here, let's talk about why he feels that way ... and how it's possible to even agree with some of his critiques while still regarding "The Last Jedi" as the best film in the sequel trilogy (which I do).
'But they're all lovely'
In a video for First We Feast recorded prior to the SAG-AFTRA strike, Boyega laid out his feelings about the sequel trilogy:
"'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' is most definitely the best. Second, for me, comes ['The Rise of Skywalker']. The worst — in the most respectful sense — is ['The Last Jedi']. But they're all lovely."
I think I get where Boyega is coming from. Marketing for "The Force Awakens" made heavy use of the visual of his character, Finn, wielding a lightsaber during its climax, and Finn himself very much splits protagonist duties with Rey (Daisy Ridley). He's also never the butt of any jokes in the film, with the humor instead coming from Finn's relatable reactions to whatever absurdity is happening around him. Compare that to "The Last Jedi," which kicks off with some slapstick comedy at Finn's expense before shuttling him off on a side quest with the character Rose (Kelly Marie Tran) to the city Canto Bight. When you frame it like that, it seems like a fairly disrespectful way to treat the first Black lead in a "Star Wars" film.
Of course, Rose and Finn's mission to Canto Bight is all about developing Finn as a character in ways "The Force Awakens" didn't, and it culminates with one of the best moments in the sequel trilogy (Finn proudly declaring himself "Rebel scum"). It also laid the groundwork for the two characters to play an even more prominent role in the third film, as would've been the case had Lucasfilm made Colin Trevorrow's version of the script, "Duel of the Fates." Instead, Rose was criminally sidelined in "The Rise of Skywalker" and we never got to see Finn really come into his own as a leader in the Resistance, much less explore his latent Force abilities.
'The greatest teacher, failure is'
"The Rise of Skywalker" is a slapped-together trilogy finale, no question about it. It does, however, have Finn teaming up with other former stormtroopers to fight back against the First Order, itself a logical payoff to his storyline in "The Force Awakens," yet not something "The Last Jedi" really touched upon. Like most of "The Rise of Skywalker," though, this narrative thread is only half-baked, and even Boyega seems to think it should've gone further. "To a certain extent, there should have been a stormtrooper rebellion," he told Vanity Fair in 2022.
So why, then, is Boyega harder on "The Last Jedi" than the rest of the sequel trilogy? Only he could tell you, but I get the impression that was the film where it became clear to him there wasn't a firm plan for what the trilogy was even about. Flying by the seat of their pants is nothing new for "Star Wars" creatives — heck, it's what George Lucas did throughout the original trilogy. Except, it's one thing to have a single filmmaker leading the charge. When you keep bringing in directors with very different styles, it's undoubtedly frustrating for your actors (who obviously have their own thoughts about where things should go).
Perhaps that's why Boyega looks back more fondly on "The Rise of Skywalker." It didn't work (to put it gently), but with "The Force Awakens" director J.J. Abrams at the helm and Finn back in the main line of action, it might've been a better experience for him than "The Last Jedi" was ... even if "The Last Jedi" says something meaningful and "The Rise of Skywalker," well, doesn't. One just hopes Disney and Lucasfilm learn the correct lessons from their failure going forward, whatever the future holds for Boyega in the franchise.