Kelly Marie Tran teases her Star Wars: The Last Jedi character

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

In addition to catching up with Rey (Daisy Ridley), Finn (John Boyega), and Poe (Oscar Isaac), STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI will introduce more new characters on both sides of the battle between The First Order and the Resistance, including Rose Tico, a young Resistance mechanic who will be teaming up with Finn on an important mission. While speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Kelly Marie Tran teased a little about her character and why she belives audiences will connect with her.

Rose is smart and she’s confident and she’s loyal. She’s going to be such a cool character because she’s someone who isn’t a model. She’s not a superhero. She’s just kind of an everyday person, and that’s something special about her. She’s someone who is able to face her fears in the face of adversity even though she kind of is a background player in the Resistance.

As for whether we'll see Rose make it out of STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI in one piece, Kelly Marie Tran says that she still has no clue if she'll be back for STAR WARS: EPISODE IX, joking, "let me know if you hear anything." The upcoming STAR WARS sequel is easily Tran's largest project to date, in fact, she was still working a day job and was in the office when she received word that she got the part. "I found out. I couldn’t tell anyone, so I just went right back to my job and finished out the work day," Tran said. "I was dying inside. I was numb; I was answering emails like what’s happening?!!"

Once the film is released, much of the world will suddenly know who Kelly Marie Tran is, and her co-stars have given her some first-hand advice when it comes to dealing with sudden fame. "John [Boyega] and Daisy [Ridley] have told me a little bit about what it was like for them. I think it’s different for everyone," Tran said. "And I don’t know if I’ll be ready until it happens. It’s one of those things that you can anticipate, you can think about, but you kind of just have to take it as it comes. But I have a great family and great friends, and I think that they’ll keep me grounded."

STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI will hit theaters on December 15, 2017.