She was never a science fiction enthusiast, but she is on her way to becoming an icon of the genre. After going from anonymity to putting a face on the heroic Rey in the latest ‘Star Wars’ trilogy, the young actress faces a new dystopia alongside Tom Holland.
“Although it seems strange, I do not receive offers to star in romantic comedies,” says amused Daisy Ridley (London, 1992) confirming that the times when the most that Hollywood offered a rising star, young and beautiful was to sigh for the sex symbol of turn have been definitively exiled. Or maybe, starting her career in a big way, bringing the brave Rey to life in the latest Star Wars trilogy, has allowed her to think twice about which projects to embark on. “Without a doubt, she has given me the opportunity to do smaller things and to say to others no, which is wonderful,” she acknowledges. Or if, as those who know her claim, she Daisy has as much character as her galactic alter ego and is only attracted to characters that allow her to grow in all aspects. “I think I am very fortunate to have become an actress at a time when there are very interesting roles for us,” she says. “My formula for choosing a movie is simple: calmly read the script and get excited. But I don’t like to say that the women I play are strong, I think it’s an overused adjective. They are simply capable and self-sufficient young people ”. This is how the actress sees Viola, the female lead of Chaos Walking, the film based on the first volume, The Knife in the Hand, of the youth trilogy of the same name written by Patrick Ness, also author of A Monster Comes to see me. Directed by Doug Liman, veteran filmmaker of action titles such as The Bourne Affair (2002), Mr. and Mrs. Smith (2005) or Edge of Tomorrow (2014), Chaos Walking is set in a dystopian neighborhood, Prentisstown, where Todd – played by Tom Holland, another young actor used to dealing with multi-million dollar franchises – has grown up believing that a virus has killed all women and given all its inhabitants an ability they call ‘Noise’, the ability to listen to thoughts. of others. Him until he meets Viola and discovers the source of the silence. From there, the two join in a frantic flight through the New World pursued by the villain Prentiss (Mads Mikkelsen).
Second readings, first teachings
Behind the appearance of a science fiction youth story, Chaos Walking contains a critique of toxic masculinity and violence against women, something that caught the interest of Ridley, who is not used to being silent in the face of injustices. “You only have to look at the statistics to verify that domestic violence is one of the most serious problems that our society faces, but I want to be optimistic because I see that in recent times a serious debate has been generated on this issue and the new generations have things much clearer. The wonderful thing about cinema and literature is that they can teach us a lot, and the writer Patrick Ness intelligently mixes messages for young people, but also for adults. We are seeing what happens in Chaos Walking now: the people in charge do terrible things and the rest of the world acts as if nothing is wrong, it is crazy ”, argues the actress, a compulsive reader.
The consequences of excess information – or, paradoxically, of disinformation? – and the lack of privacy that surrounds us, another of Chaos Walking’s allegations, was experienced in the first person by Ridley when she went from being a practically unknown interpreter to become a global star thanks to Star Wars: The Force Awakens (JJ Abrams, 2015). She was working as a waitress in London when she went to the casting in which they were looking for a new face with a resume that barely included a few shorts, brief appearances in series like Youngers or Mr. Selfridge, a video clip of the rapper Wiley and the main character in the film of terror Scrawl (Peter Hearn, 2015). Five auditions later her role was his, but she was also under pressure to join a franchise that transcends the film. It was no use for Abrams to warn him: “This is not a role in a movie, this is a religion for people that changes things on an inconceivable level.” A year later, the actress left Instagram, where she accumulated two and a half million followers, jaded by the comments of the haters. “It was the best decision I could make. There are people who do very well in the networks, but they are not for me. I deal with this chaos by reading things that show different points of view and researching the people who say them. Also, I like to disconnect when I get home; I don’t need to be everything
