John Boyega is the first person of color to be a lead in a Star Wars film. He was supposed to have a main role in all three films of the Trilogy, but instead was pushed aside in the last two movies. Since he began to play the character of Finn, he has been met with racism and cyber bullying. That has only increased the past few weeks.
The drama started when John dared to criticize The Last Jedi. He said in an interview that the last Star Wars film was not what he or other cast members expected. This is something that several of the actors have already stated, including Mark Hamill who plays Luke Skywalker. However, a woman on Twitter took this as an offense and created a smear campaign against him. He was faced with hate just based on a comment about his opinion on his movie.
Now, this issue brings up a question of whether or not actors should be able to voice their thoughts on the films and television they are in. Months earlier, Emilia Clarke made it clear how disappointed she was in the last season of The Game Of Thrones. While I'm not in the fandom and don't know for sure, I don't believe she faced as much criticism for her remarks. Other actors like Robert Pattison have a track record of disliking their roles, and the general public find it funny instead of distasteful.
I don't believe that actors and actresses should not be able to be honest about their work. It would be so difficult to lie and say you think the film or television program you starred on was perfect when it wasn't. If the viewers are allowed to speak their opinion, then the actors deserve the same courtesy. Some would argue this is disrespectful to the writers and directors of the work, but I don't think that is fair. They should not be exempt from hearing what the actors really think just makes it may be offensive to them. Especially in cases where they sidelined people of color and wrote deliberately sexist scenes into their movies or episodes.
Twitter
Today, John decided to take to Twitter and call out a certain part of the Star Wars films. He is trending for this and the fandom is divided on the issue. Many fans are angry at Boyega for in their words "bullying" Rey and Kylo shippers. They have tweeted at him that he is being a bad role model and hurting his fans feelings. However, I don't agree with that sentiment. Many "Reylo" fans have been the ones to be racist towards John and Finn. They have been against his character because he might get in the way of their ship or their favorite characters screen time. John does not owe anything to the people that have been hating him and bullying him since the first movie.
John, and any other cast member, can say what they want about the films they starred in. If John wants to voice his opinion about a ship based on abuse and sexism, I say congratulations. If Daisy wants to call out the ship for being toxic, then good for her. If Mark wants to criticize Rian Johnson for how he treated Luke's character, then I'm right there with him. On the other side, if the cast loved the film, let them say they loved it. However, we as fans of movie and TV cannot dictate what the actors say or feel. So let John Boyega speak.
