Naomi Ackie would love to return for another Star Wars project: "I’d jump on that horse any day"

Naomi Ackie as Jannah in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
(Image credit: Lucasfilm/Disney)

Naomi Ackie would love to return to a galaxy far, far away – if Lucasfilm will have her. The actor played Jannah, a former stormtrooper turned freedom fighter, in 2019’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

"Of course, if they’d have me, I’d jump on that horse any day," Ackie tells Total Film at the EE BAFTA Rising Star nominees announcement. "I think it’s an incredible universe and I know that they're always telling more stories and making more links to the Star Wars gone by. It was so much fun and it was at such an early part of my film career. It'd be so funny going back now as what feels like a completely different person and taking up the role again, but only if they'd have me."

We last saw Jannah as she helped the Resistance defeat the Final Order at the Battle of Exegol, leading a tribe of orbak-riding warriors. The Rise of Skywalker ending left her story open too, with the hint that she could be related to Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee Williams). After admitting to him that she doesn’t know where she’s from, he tells her: "Well, let’s find out."

There are plenty of new Star Wars TV shows and movies on the LucasFilm slate at the moment, but it’s not clear if any will pick up with existing characters post-Skywalker Saga. Ackie is keeping busy too with Parasite director Bong Joon-ho’s new movie Mickey 17 up next, as well as celebrating her BAFTA EE Rising Star nomination. 

Ackie was shortlisted for her performance as Whitney Houston in I Wanna Dance With Somebody. "I finished doing press for that Christmas, and getting this nomination in the brand new year is really lovely," she says of the honor. "It feels like a full stop at the end of a really lovely journey." 

The EE Rising Star award is the only BAFTA voted for by the public and the winner will be announced at the ceremony on February 19. Ackie is nominated alongside Emily’s Emma Mackey, Living’s Aimee Lou Wood, Good Luck to You, Leo Grande’s Daryl McCormack, and The Woman King’s Sheila Atim.

Voting for the EE Rising Star Award is now open here. For more on Star Wars, check out our guides to the Star Wars timeline and how to watch the Star Wars movies in order.

Fay Watson
Deputy Entertainment Editor

I’m the Deputy Entertainment Editor here at GamesRadar+, covering TV and film for the Total Film and SFX sections online. I previously worked as a Senior Showbiz Reporter and SEO TV reporter at Express Online for three years. I've also written for The Resident magazines and Amateur Photographer, before specializing in entertainment.

Read more
the acolyte
The Acolyte star says the Star Wars show's cancelation was "overwhelming," but she's still "proud" of playing a Jedi: "Bucket list ticked"
Jod Na Nawood holding a lightsaber
A Jedi was cut from the Star Wars Skeleton Crew finale – was she Jod’s former master?
John Boyega in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
John Boyega was tired of "doing a lot of falling" in the Star Wars sequels, so asked director J.J. Abrams for a "level of growth" between The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker
The Rise of Skywalker
New Rey movie screenwriter reveals what his vision might have in common with Star Wars creator George Lucas
Werner Herzog in The Mandalorian
Star Wars fans are sharing their favorite unbelievable canon cameos – and some of them are seriously deep-cut
The Rise of Skywalker
Despite those retirement reports, Lucasfilm boss Kathleen Kennedy is "very involved" in the Rey Star Wars movie, according to Daisy Ridley
Latest in Star Wars Movies
John Boyega in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
John Boyega was tired of "doing a lot of falling" in the Star Wars sequels, so asked director J.J. Abrams for a "level of growth" between The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker
Darth Vader in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
Star Wars fans have ignited an age-old debate, and there are some seriously hot takes
The Mandalorian and Grogu
The Mandalorian and Grogu has the lowest budget of any theatrical Star Wars movie since Disney bought Lucasfilm
The Mandalorian
Bo-Katan's actor may have accidentally answered whether she is appearing in The Mandalorian and Grogu movie with this cryptic response
John Boyega as Finn in Star Wars: The Last Jedi
John Boyega reveals Tom Cruise actually helped him get cast in Star Wars
Watto in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace
Star Wars confirms Watto isn’t dead after all in new comic, and fans are celebrating his miraculous survival
Latest in News
Pillars of Eternity
10 years later, in a post-Baldur's Gate 3 and Avowed world, Obsidian is giving its own throwback CRPG Pillars of Eternity a turn-based combat mode
Destiny 2 Lightfall
When Destiny 2 "weekly active users dropped lower and faster than we'd seen since 2018," Bungie assembled an A-Team to put out some fires: "We needed to do something"
Velma, Daphne, Fred, Shaggy, and Scooby-Doo looking at a giant key which is also a clue
Netflix is rebooting Scooby-Doo as a live-action series from the producer of Supergirl and The Flash centered around a "supernatural murder" at a summer camp
Astro Bot
Astro Bot went through 23 pitch iterations before its director promised PlayStation "happy gameplay" and "overflowing charm," though it did once end with robot decapitation that made "some people really upset"
Tomb Raider
5 years after Avengers, 2 years after its last layoffs, and who knows how long before Perfect Dark and Tomb Raider return, Crystal Dynamics announces another round of layoffs
AI Limit
"AI is not as effective as it might appear": Dev of AI-focused Soulslike RPG says they didn't use any AI-generated content and it can't match "genuine creativity"