It’s been more than a decade since the sequel trilogy began with 2015’s “The Force Awakens.” It was immediately followed by 2017’s controversial “The Last Jedi” and 2019’s “The Rise of Skywalker,” the last “Star Wars” film to hit theaters. That’s about to change when “The Mandalorian & Grogu” hits theaters on May 22, but that takes place years before the events of the sequel trilogy. In honor of May 4, or Star Wars Day, let’s take a look back at some of the main stars of the sequel trilogy and where they are currently.
Daisy Ridley’s Return as Rey ‘Will Be Worth the Wait’
After becoming famous for her role as Rey, Marguerite Ridley went on to star in “Cleaner,” “Young Woman and the Sea” and the zombie film “We Bury The Dead,” released earlier this year.
She will next appear in “Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol” alongside Johnny Depp, who plays the titular Scrooge. The feature film boasts an all-star cast, including Rupert Grint, Sam Claflin, Ian McKellen and Tramell Tillman.
Even though there was supposed to be a Rey movie directed by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, there has been little news about the project since its initial announcement. Some fans believe that his standalone film will now be part of Simon Kinberg’s new trilogy. It might be a while before she returns to the screen with her lightsaber, but Ridley recently reassured her followers that her return to a galaxy far, far away is “worth the wait.”
John Boyega’s return as Finn unclear
John Boyega played the role of Finn, a Stormtrooper turned Resistance fighter. Since leaving the galaxy far, far away, he has won a Golden Globe Award for his portrayal of Leroy Logan in Steve McQueen’s anthology “Small Axe.” He also appeared in 2022’s “The Woman King” and 2023’s “They Cloned Tyrone.”
Boyega has expressed mixed feelings about the franchise, with his character being sidelined after 2015’s “The Force Awakens.” In 2019’s “The Rise of Skywalker,” he spends most of the film unsuccessfully trying to tell Rey that her character is Force-sensitive. The reveal never happened, leaving many fans disappointed.
In March 2026, during a panel at Megacon Orlando, a fan told him, “Get Dave [Filoni] on the phone. » Boyega replied, “Actually, I did,” leading to speculation that he was working with Lucasfilm to reprise the character. However, some members of the public have since taken to social media to say that he seemed to be joking, so it looks like fans will just have to wait and see.
Oscar Isaac will “maybe” return in “Star Wars”
Oscar Isaac is currently starring in Season 2 of Netflix’s “Beef,” although the actor has been quite busy since leaving the galaxy far, far away, where he played Resistance pilot-turned-general Poe Dameron. He then joined another Disney franchise, Marvel, where he played the role of the titular “Moon Knight” in the Disney+ series. He also recently starred in Netflix’s “Frankenstein.”
In November 2025, he said he would be “open” to returning to “Star Wars.” However, he admitted he was “not so willing to work with Disney” after Jimmy Kimmel was taken off the air following a comment he made about Charlie Kirk’s assassination.
In April 2026, he again stated that he was “maybe” interested in a return to “Star Wars” and revealed that the phrase “Somehow Palpatine came back,” which was widely mocked on social media, was a “new addition” during the reshoots.
Kelly Marie Tran is set to return as Rose Tico
Kelly Marie Tran is probably one of the most controversial characters added to the sequel trilogy. Her character, Resistance technician Rose Tico, did not appear in 2015’s “The Force Awakens” and was subject to the controversial Canto Bight subplot in 2017’s “The Last Jedi.”
Regardless of her character’s reception in live-action, she continued to voice Rose Tico in 2020’s “The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special” and 2022’s “LEGO Star Wars Summer Vacation.” In addition to narrating the audiobook “The Last Jedi: Cobalt Squadron,” she also voiced Dark Rose Tico in “LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy,” which premiered on Disney+ in 2024.
In April 2025, she told CBR that she had had conversations about a possible return for Rose Tico, stating that she was still a fan of “Star Wars” and that it still had “such a warm place in my heart, just that whole universe and that whole experience.”
Adam Driver wanted to return to ‘Star Wars’ before Disney shut him down
Since I left a galaxy far, far away, Adam Pilote received Academy Award nominations for Best Supporting Actor in “BlacKkKlansman” in 2018 and Best Actor in “Marriage Story” in 2019, but he also starred in “The Last Duel” in 2021, “House of Gucci” in 2021, “Ferrari” in 2023 and “Megalopolis” in 2024, to name a few.
He has also been tapped to star in a new Netflix series called “Rabbit, Rabbit,” an art world drama on Apple TV called “The Dealer” and the military drama “Alone At Dawn,” which tells the true story of Air Force Combat Controller John Chapman’s fight to save his comrades and the investigation to prove his bravery that earned him a Medal of Honor.
Despite his busy schedule, the actor revealed in October 2025 that he and director Steven Soderbergh were working on their own film called “The Hunt For Ben Solo”. Although he played villain Kylo Ren in the first two films, he returned to his identity as Ben Solo and was seemingly redeemed at the end of “The Rise of Skywalker” as he fought Emperor Palpatine, and appeared to have died after disappearing into the Force.
However, it seems Driver felt the character had some unfinished business. He and Soderbergh spent a few years developing a script with Scott Z. Burns that received approval from Lucasfilm. However, Driver told AP News that the film was shot by Bob Iger.
“We pitched the script to Lucasfilm. They loved the idea. They totally understood our angle and why we were doing it,” Driver explained. “We took it to Bob Iger and Alan Bergman, and they said no. They didn’t see how Ben Solo was alive. And that was it.”
Since then, several fan campaigns have attempted to revive the project, but Soderbergh has ended any hopes that the film will ever be made. That said, it is clear that the character of Ben Solo still arouses interest, and it is possible that he will make his return, even as a Force ghost, in Simon Kinberg’s new trilogy.
It remains to be seen whether any of these characters will appear in “Star Wars: Starfighter,” the first film set after the events of “The Rise of Skywalker.” The film, starring Ryan Goslingis scheduled for a theatrical release in May 2027.
