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When I hop on the phone with Daisy Ridley, she sounds a little breathless.
I just got in the door, she says.
It was a whirlwind trip.
The longest press day there ever was.
But Im home at last!
My best friend told me that after the fact, filming.
She was like, We studied that.
I was like, Oh, shit!
Id also seen various iterations of it onstage.
Hamlet isHamlet; I never felt like, Oh, Ophelia needs her story.
But it was so fun to be able to tell her story when that opportunity came.
If Id thought about whod played Ophelia before, it would have freaked me out so much.
But by the end she escapes that toxicity and reclaims her life.
Not that thats right; its definitely not right.
But I thought of it more as Ophelia not waiting for Hamlet.
So its a breaking away, an attempt to find something that wasnt that.
But now that you say it, yeah.
It is a similar reinvention, getting away from the toxic nature of an environment like that.
Have you ever broken away from something toxic, released yourself like she does?I have, actually.
With a friendship, this year.
Friends argue and whatever, but sometimes things happen that shouldnt happen.
Im usually good at drawing the line, but its hard with friendships.
But its hard to break away from something.
People judge you or dont understand it.
It was scary at the time.
But I did actually do that.
And for the better.
I was like, Honesty is the best policy.
Its a lot like what Ophelia does.
She doesnt tell everyone she just breaks away.
Whats it like to be slapped by Naomi Watts?That was a real slap!
I do remember being like, Oh my god.
Heat of the moment and all.
That was an intense scene in general.
In between, I was just quietly weeping in a corner.[Laughs.]
Shes doing so much here, playing two separate people, both of whom are relatively deranged.
What was she like on set?Its funny I dont really think her characters are deranged!
Luckily, Naomi isnt method-y.
So she didnt go all deranged during filming.
You had awful anxiety after the release of the firstStar Wars, even developing holes in your stomach wall.
How did you fix that and how are you feeling these days?Im feeling great.
I think it was I was training in a way Id never done.
Its a lot for a body to take.
It was a massive press tour, going to all of these countries Id never been to.
Its hard on your body to do things like that.
I basically did not properly take care of myself.
So now its like,A massage would be good!
A facial would be good.All that talk about self-care its really important.
I still train really hard, but in a way thats much gentler on your body.
Ive realized that you dont have to absolutely kill yourself to make it be healthy.
It was a big lesson.
Training, traveling, and not feeling like youre in charge.
And I took control and figured out how to keep myself safe.
I do feel a lot calmer, and settled.
I dont think anything will ever be as scary as the initial six months afterStar Warscame out.
Its not a million miles away from what this scene is.
It was very sad.
I found it very moving to watch it, because I do remember the original.
Its eerie that it resonates so much with what the story is this time.
I was trying to do my acting, like, Oh my god, Carrie!
There wasnt any discussion about what we were gonna do.
Our sister publication did a funny piece on the absoluteenormity of Adam Driver.
Is he an overwhelming presence, physically?Absolutely, yes.
How would you describe his size?Id describe him like a hulking, skulking …
I think skulking implies something negative.
Thats how Id describe him.
It sounds so disrespectful for someone Ive worked with for so long.
It felt like an end.
I dont know whatll happen in however many years.
There are so many characters in theStar Warsworld whove never been explored.
Theres so much for the filmmakers to work on.
So right now, I dont think so.
But who could say, really?
An opportunity might present itself.
I love how the movie hasnt come out and people are like, What about going forward?
Right now, it feels like a really nice full stop on the Skywalker series.
