John Boyega Apologizes for ‘Badly Worded’ Comments

Star Wars franchise star John Boyega has clarified recent comments he made about social media that many fans interpreted as being critical of co-star Kelly Marie Tran. 

In a tweet early Thursday, Boyega explained that he was “in no way” referring to his co-star. “I was really speaking from my own perspective throughout this franchise. Sometimes I’ve felt strong and sometimes I’ve felt weak. Badly worded though. I apologize,” he said.

The original comments in question went down during a recent Variety interview. Asked about the “double-edged sword” of social media engagement, with interviewer Adam B. Vary specifically mentioning Kelly Marie Tran, Boyega said he recognizes most backlash as being simply false.

“Being in this position, you just understand the masses, how the masses think, you know,” Boyega said in the interview, published earlier this week. “Through social media, we get to engage, we get to have fun. But at the same time, for those who are not mentally strong, you are weak to believe in every single thing that you read. That’s, you know, it is what it is. I don’t know, for me anyway, when I see that [backlash], I’m like, well, that’s actually not true. But no, it is actually not true. So it’s kind of like [shrugs] it is what it is.”

Thursday, Boyega directed fans to a previous tweet in which he defended his co-star against social media bullying, stating his feelings on the issue remain the same.

Here’s the tweet he’s referencing:

The Rise of Skywalker, which has also been preceded by some revived Last Jedi debating, is out Dec. 20.