In anticipation of the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Yahoo Global News Anchor Katie Couric walked with John Boyega (Finn) through the Star Wars exhibit in Discovery Time Square. During their tour, they talked about his character, Luke Skywalker, what Marvel Super Hero he’d most like to play, and did some amazing imitations (including his take on: “Do. Or do not. There is no try.”)
Highlights from Yahoo News’s interview include:
· What drew Boyega to Star Wars and why he believes the saga has been and remains popular.
· How he got the role – “J.J. Abrams loved him in another movie and got in contact with him four years later. That kick-started seven months of auditions, meetings, training and then J.J. told him he finally booked the part – ‘That he would be the star of Star Wars.’”
· Luke Skywalker/Mark Hamill’s role in the trilogy – “Luke is not there for a reason. You have to trust the makers, the powers that be. Luke is mysterious for a very big, major reason and it’s going to be cool.”
· The evolution of his character and if Finn is a Jedi – “He is definitely a trained warrior. Jedis are a part of myth and a part of legend. In the trailer, we see Hans Solo say, “It’s true, it’s real. All of it.” It’ll be good to see who helms the Jedi role. That’ll be cool.”
· Which Marvel Super Hero he’d most like to play – “I’ve wanted to play all of them… If I could only play one super hero, I would love to be Spider-Man. That would be fun.”
· He also discussed a conversation with Iron Man’s Robert Downey Jr. — “I sought him out. I wanted to meet him and at the time we were at the same agency, so I sent him an email and just said I’d do it, if you’re up for it. He sent me a charming email back saying that: ‘you know what, when you’re in LA to come over to the house and we’ll have a chit chat.’ So, we did. He’s fantastic. He has an abundance of knowledge. He wouldn’t call himself my mentor, but I call him that because of how much I learned from him.”
For more on Couric’s interview with John Boyega, visit Yahoo News