GQ – A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away a bright-eyed, anonymous young woman is called to a universe she’d imagined but could never prepare for: expectation, responsibility, unseen forces wrenching her this way and that. This month, The Rise Of Skywalker closes the story of her character, Rey, and it’s taken as long for Daisy Ridley to become who Star Wars fans wanted and still remain herself. In this wide-ranging interview, she shares the films’ physical and mental toll, reveals how they inspired her to speak out and – who knew? – drops enough f-bombs to down a Death Star.

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When Daisy Ridley says taco with its short a in her Estuary English accent, it sounds more like a planet in the Star Wars galaxy than the filled tortilla. The actress will conclude her run playing Rey, the flinty heroine and suspected Jedi, in the third film of the trilogy, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, out in theaters December 20, and she and I are having lunch at Los Angeles vegan restaurant Nic’s on Beverly to discuss the end of the epic sci-fi saga, the trajectory of her still-nascent career, and the push-pull of navigating a private life with a public persona.

The sprightly brunette suggests sharing several plates, including tempura-avocado tacos and eggplant-Bolognese gnochetti. Ridley forsook meat products after watching Simon Amstell’s cautionary mockumentary Carnage, though she calls herself a “chegan” due to the occasional sushi cheat. The Londoner is in town for Disney’s annual behemoth D23 Expo, which gathers all of its stars in Anaheim to address fans and press. There, a newly released clip showing Rey draped in a dark robe and clutching a red lightsaber had fan sites erupting in furious and urgent speculation: Does Rey cross over to the dark side?!

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Daisy Ridley On Social Media Silence, Fan Backlash, & Why This Is Just A Job

Daisy Ridley doesn’t particularly love having her picture taken. It may seem counterintuitive for someone who makes their living in front of a camera, but the truth is that the 27-year-old, who became a household name when she was cast as Rey in the current Star Wars trilogy just five years ago, visibly relaxes when the shoot part of the morning is over and we can just talk. It’s indicative of her relationship to “celebrity”; where others might use grander language to talk about the film industry, for Ridley, a set is her “workplace” and acting is her “job.” It’s a job she’s dedicated to, but she won’t let her status as an action figure, sci-fi icon, and Halloween costume dictate how much of her life she’s willing to share with the world.

“There is this massive expectation on actors to have a very loud voice,” she explains, curled up on a couch in the Bustle green room. As for how loud she wants to be? That’s something Ridley is “still figuring it out.”

For now, it seems that she’s eager to let the work speak for itself. In her first leading post-Rey role (she also appeared in 2017’s Murder on the Orient Express and voiced a Beatrix Potter character in 2018’sPeter Rabbit), Ridley reinvents one of Shakespeare’s most tragic figures. Ophelia, now out in theaters and on digital and on demand,based on the novel by Lisa Klein, tells the story of Hamlet from the perspective of the Prince of Denmark’s doomed paramour — though in this version she’s not so doomed and not so passive, either.

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Star Wars actor Daisy Ridley is vowing never to return to social media, saying her use of Instagram and Facebook is forever “cut off like a Skywalker limb.”

The British star sat down with BuzzFeed News’ morning show AM to DM on Wednesday to discuss her role in Ophelia, a movie version of Shakespeare’s Hamlet told from that character’s perspective. But she also weighed in on a variety of other issues.

After she was first cast as Rey in the Star Wars films in 2014, Ridley said she found social media amplified critical voices who were mad that the sci-fi series was now focusing on a central woman character.

“I honestly think now with social media and stuff…it’s great to have freedom of expression, but I do feel like people think opinions have so much weight,” she told BuzzFeed News.

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