“Star Wars” fans were left disappointed and outraged over the treatment of Kelly Marie Tran’s character, Rose Tico, in the new “Star Wars” film, “The Rise of Skywalker”.
Among those unsatisfied with Tran’s lack of screen time was “Crazy Rich Asians” director Jon M. Chu, who tweeted on Thursday night, “Ok @disneyplus . Put me in coach. Let’s make this series happen. #RoseTicoDeservedBetter @starwars”.
According to an estimate from Forbes, Tran appeared on screen for a total of just one minute and 16 seconds in the entire “The Rise of Skywalker,” which has a total runtime of two hours and 22 minutes.
According to “Star Wars” fans, Rose Tico’s sister, who was killed off in the opening scene of “The Last Jedi,” was given more screen time in those few scenes compared to Tran’s character in an entire film.
Prior to the release of the new “Star Wars” film, Tran told Entertainment Weekly that she was excited for fans to see the interactions between Rose and Rey.
However, no such scene was included in the final product of “The Rise of Skywalker,” suggesting the film had been drastically cut down, almost eliminating Tran’s character altogether.
The Vietnamese American actress was also the victim of racist attacks and harassment online following the release of “The Last Jedi,” leading her to delete her social media accounts. According to Indie Wire, “Star Wars” fans are now arguing that by making Rose obsolete, the writers and directors have essentially validated the trolls and their racist messages.
Chu’s tweet in support of Rose Tico and Kelly Marie Tran has gained the attention of thousands of Twitter users who expressed their support for a spin-off series featuring Tran’s character, much like “The Mandalorian” currently airing on Disney+.
Feature Images via Star Wars
