Daisy Ridley was thrust into fame the moment her name was announced as one of the stars
for her first major film, which happened to be Star Wars.
So just how did Ridley go from a regular British girl to a super fierce, space-traveling Jedi
warrior?
And how else has she changed along the way?
Daisy Ridley was born on April 10, 1992 in London, England.
In an interview with Vogue, she described her younger self as "a little tomboy," who
had a lot of energy.
She was, according to the actress herself:
"Loud.
Often very sassy.
Insane amounts of energy.
I remember asking, 'Was I shy?'
And my mum laughing hysterically.
She said I used to run into a room and go, 'Helloooo!'"
It was her energy as a child that moved Ridley towards the performing arts.
The star went to a performing arts boarding school from ages 9 to 18.
She didn't start out with acting, but with singing and gymnastics.
As the star told Vogue, the reasoning was actually that she was so energetic that her
parents chose that school, quote, "literally just to keep me busy, because the days were
twelve hours long."
Ridley didn't land on acting specifically until age 17.
It started with a girl in her drama class who told Ridley that she couldn't play Lady
Macbeth because she didn't have, quote, "the right accent."
"Is this, like, a thing?"
Ridley's teacher heard this and gave the future star confidence to push forward.
Even successful stars have had moments that felt like failure, and Ridley is no exception.
During an interview with Elle, the actress explained how her first job didn't go as expected,
saying:
"I was actually sacked from my first job.
It was at a workshop for a short film this poet had written, about when she used to work
in a strip club.
After the first week, I was told not to come back."
But more jobs came.
Ridley was in a supermarket commercial where she was, quote, "eating a pork pie in a way
that has never seen anyone so happy."
She then received a role in the UK television series Mr. Selfridge.
In April of 2014, then-22-year-old Ridley was announced as a new cast member in Star
Wars: Episode VII.
While coming into a huge property like Star Wars could have been scary, Ridley saw it
as a positive that she was new to the process.
"Where are you from?"
"Nowhere."
"No one's from nowhere."
"Jakku."
"Alright, that is pretty much nowhere."
The celeb told Variety:
"I think I didn't psych myself out...I wasn't trying to fit into a thing...it was not like
I was like, 'Right, I'm the Han; I'm the Leia; I'm the Luke.'
I was just like, 'Okay, I'm Rey, just trying to do me, just trying to do this scene, trying
to do the right thing,' and I think that was a huge advantage because I think if not, it
would've been a very different thing."
Although Ridley didn't want the pressure of the Star Wars property to weigh on her, she
still put in the time and dedication for her role in the film, which included major shifts
in eating and exercise, and included an intense three-month schedule of working out five hours
every day, five days a week.
She also was doing stunt practice outside of those hours.
While Ridley wasn't able to see family and friends as much, working out ended up being
a nice routine for the star.
She told Elle:
"It became my solace.
Because it's the only thing structured in my life right now.
Training is sort of a therapy session, I guess...It was very weird because I went from being in
the pub, being around quite a bit, to all of a sudden not being able to see anyone."
Finding a routine became very difficult once the film came out.
While the reviews were positive, they also brought a lot of attention for the star.
As a result, Ridley felt a need to go to therapy to handle the extreme change in her life.
She opened up about her decision during an interview with Vogue, saying:
"I felt like I was sort of reducing myself because I was so worried that people would
recognize me...You know what?
I want to dance through life.
I don't want to scuttle."
The star's biggest concern was having her perception changed by fame.
She said:
"I worry that things start to seem normal that aren't normal.
You get rushed through airports, and you never have to queue, and you get tickets to things
that you wouldn't otherwise.
I think it's important to remind yourself that it's not normal.
It's difficult, though, because it is my normal."
As Ridley's acting career was gaining speed and success, it couldn't be forgotten that
she has other skills as well.
Ridley's singing training in school eventually came to the attention of Star Wars director
J.J. Abrams.
The director spoke of the actress' talents to E! News, saying:
"One day on set, she just started singing and had the most beautiful voice I ever heard."
Ridley showed the world that singing voice in 2016, when she was part of a collaboration
with Anne Hathway and the one and only Barbra Streisand.
"So to have my first experience recording with Barbra Streisand is pretty insane."
When Ridley was on set with the legendary Carrie Fisher during The Force Awakens, she
was able to get to know the veteran actor, and the pair became good friends.
So it's not surprising that Ridley looks back on their time together with great fondness.
She recalled in an interview with The Guardian:
"Oh my God, she was so sassy and had all these amazing stories...She was so smart and so
funny.
She went through things, like wearing the gold bikini, so I didn't end up having to
do those things, and I'm so grateful."
Equally unsurprising is that when Fisher tragically passed away in 2016, Ridley, like so many
others, was crestfallen and couldn't stop crying.
But she's thankful that posthumous footage of Fisher could be used in subsequent films.
She told GQ:
"It's really sad.
And it's going to be really sad.
But also, it's amazing that they have all this footage that is woven into the story
in such a strange way."
After Ridley's big debut in The Force Awakens and on the heels of her turn in Murder on
the Orient Express, the actress took on a role that really challenged her: She played
Hamlet's ill-treated love interest in the 2018 indie film Ophelia.
So what was so difficult about playing this particular part?
Ridley revealed to Variety:
"Well, my main thing, which is why I did Orient Express immediately afterwards, is I really
like to be part of the group.
And I've only really done one like leading thing, which was Ophelia, which was overwhelming.
I like to be part of a group of people."
"It was tough, it was two months of being in every day, like I was in mostly every scene."
Unfortunately, the film was panned by audiences when it premiered at the Sundance Film Festival,
but Ridley's acting was widely lauded.
And though Ophelia was later re-edited and much improved, it didn't gain traction in
the mainstream markets.
The actress quipped:
"Some people have seen it.
They were very nice.
So to those three people, thank you."
Despite the fact that Ridley was extremely successful and world-famous by 2017, emotionally,
she wasn't doing as well.
Thanks to her sudden and intense fame, she was constantly anxious and exhausted by the
constant scrutiny that came with it.
She lamented in an interview with GQ:
"I saw a picture of me at the London premiere and I was so skinny and my skin was terrible.
My body was just f---ed up."
As it turned out, Ridley had literal holes in the wall of her gut because of all of the
stress.
She explained:
"I got tests done and it turned out my body was taking in no nutrients.
I was just like a little skeleton and I was just so tired.
I was becoming a ghost."
Fortunately that didn't last forever, and Ridley was eventually able to recover herself.
But it's no doubt intimidating to be thrust at the center of a franchise that is pretty
much worshiped by millions of hardcore fans.
That's something the actress has struggled with a bit, much like her sudden fame, as
she sometimes wondered what she was doing as part of the project.
In an interview with Variety, she explained:
"I really am working on liking myself and feeling like I am where I need to be.
And it has been helped by working with people that made me feel good and in a really safe
working environment.
So I feel like I can do my best work and work with a group of people that I really love."
That support from the Star Wars family has helped Ridley to take it all in, and truly
enjoy the ride for all that it is.
She said:
"I've stopped trying to apologize for doing this because I know how lucky I am.
I'm having a great time."
"You're the only person that's experiencing your life, yourself.
So, if you're not having a good time, what is the point?"
Things had turned around for Daisy Ridley by the time she stepped on the set of The
Rise of Skywalker.
Unlike the previous film in the franchise, this time she was once again part of group
scenes, instead of shooting mostly one-on-ones, which made her really happy.
She gushed to GQ:
"I was so healthy.
I was so there.
I was just enjoying it.
With this one, I had such a great time."
"There is literally nothing else I could have done, it was the most output I could have
given, physically, emotionally, all of it."
Part of that good feeling was due to the fact that director J.J. Abrams had the cast shoot
scenes without dialogue, which quickly became a source of great amusement for everyone.
Ridley explained:
"Then it became a joke, because we would just wet ourselves laughing.
I said to JJ, 'You have to do a bloopers reel,' because I couldn't keep my s--- together at
all."
With The Rise of Skywalker being the last film in the rebooted Star Wars Skywalker franchise,
Daisy Ridley is done playing Rey, at least for now.
But the role is something that she's certainly going to miss.
As she explained in an interview with Variety:
"It feels strange when we're in a group doing things and people ask us how it feels because
then you're like [as if in pain] Oh!
And we genuinely all really do get along.
So that's sad."
"We were saying at the end of filming this one, imagine if we hadn't all got on?
That would have been tricky."
At the same time, however, Ridley is a little more prepared to say goodbye to both her character
and the cast and crew, thanks in part to how the end was written.
She explained:
"But also, I think this story, from what we filmed, [screenwriter] Chris [Terrio] and
J.J. [Abrams] have done such an amazing job at wrapping it up, it feels like the right
time to say goodbye.
So even though it's sad, it feels right."
Since Star Wars wrapped in 2019, you may be wondering what's next for Daisy Ridley.
Interestingly enough, she's not opposed to making the leap to more frightening venues,
and that includes horror films.
The actress revealed in an interview with Variety:
"I'm terrified of horror films, but I like them.
So I'd like to be in one.
But I think it would also, like, screw me up a bit.
I feel like you'd have to be living with your family to exorcise the bad juju when you left
set."
But while Ridley could definitely see herself playing horror, there is one genre in which
the star feels like she might struggle, unless she played a specific kind of character.
"Shame.
Shame.
Shame."
She explained:
"The one thing I can't see myself doing is comedy because I don't think I'm a funny person.
But I could be the straight person."
When it comes to discussing her personal life, Ridley stays mum on a lot of topics, including
her love life, which she keeps very private.
But there are some subjects that the actress is fine with talking about, and that includes
her political beliefs.
As she shared in an interview with The Guardian:
"I don't feel I have to edit what I say, the things that make me angry are the things that
make everyone angry.
Everyone is annoyed with [Boris Johnson].
Everyone has an issue with Trump, every sane person anyway."
That being said, Ridley doesn't consider herself to be an expert on politics, so she's not
one to harp on the topic all that often.
But that isn't because she's afraid to speak her mind, or scared to let people know how
she really feels.
She continued:
"It's not that I don't talk about this stuff.
But other people are so much more articulate than me and say it better."
Fair enough, Daisy!
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