Anna Daniels
Though Henwick’s attachment to the Star Wars universe was news to the handful of fans who hadn’t been living and breathing everything about the sequel trilogy since The Force Awakens dropped in 2015, it wasn’t the first time the actress had spoken about her near-miss as the lead in one of Hollywood’s biggest franchises.
While appearing on a solo-Q&A panel at Florida Supercon in 2016, Henwick was asked by a fan whether she thought Rey was Luke’s daughter. It was then that she revealed her connection to the part. At that time, the question of Rey’s lineage was still pretty fresh in the Star Wars fandom, and the series itself was far from any of its final installment reveals. So while Henwick seemed confident she knew the answer to that audience question, she shied away from giving too many details in fear that she might “get sued.” She told the panel audience, “The thing is, that was the role I originally auditioned for, and I got really far with that character, so I’m pretty sure I know. So… sorry guys. Secret’s safe with me.”
With the trilogy now concluded, we know the fate of Rey and who she’s related to (she’s a Palpatine by blood and a Skywalker by choice), but the same can’t be said for the future of Henwick’s character. Lucky for fans of Blue Three, Jess’ call sign in her starfighter squadron, Henwick assured THR that her young Resistance pilot character and “the first female X-wing pilot that we’ve seen” in the films is doing just fine.
“Jess Pava is alive and well,” Henwick said. “You can read up on all her adventures in new spinoff comic books. So, don’t worry, she’s doing great. She’s living her best life.”
Written by: Looper
