Naomi Ackie was a relative unknown before being cast in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and while her character proved to be a pivotal part of Finn's journey in the film, the first black female lead in the franchise seemingly had most of her story arc cut from the Skywalker Saga finale.
In an earlier version of the film, it was going to be revealed that Jannah was Lando Calrissian's daughter, snatched by The First Order as a child and trained as a Stormtrooper. For reasons unknown, that didn't make the final cut, and the character has subsequently been mostly forgotten.
Ackie, however, remains grateful for the chance to head to a Galaxy Far, Far Away.
"Getting the Star Wars role was really surreal," she tells Digital Spy. "I loved playing Jannah because she’s strong and brave. She’s one of the first black female leads to enter the Star Wars universe in 41 years and I felt the importance of that. For me, it was about everything from having natural, textured hair to not being shy of talking about what more the industry needs to do."
As for rumours that the character could return in a spinoff of some sort, she responded: "Jannah was a completely new character and I like the idea that the Star Wars universe is expanding. I think Jannah could get a spin-off. She has a really rich backstory that JJ [Abrams] told me about, and a future that we still don’t know about." Is she Lando’s long-lost daughter?"
Making a "my lips are sealed" gesture, the actress concluded with: "That’s my answer."
It's hard to say where Jannah could reappear in the Star Wars franchise, but with rumours about a female-led spinoff coming to Disney+, it's possible that the hero will return on that streaming service.
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