Star Wars: Scheduling Conflict Prevented This The Force Awakens Star From Returning for The Rise of Skywalker

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker served not only as the final chapter of the Star Wars sequel trilogy, but also the conclusion of the entire Skywalker Saga, which saw a number of figures from the history of the series to make appearances, but actress Jessica Henwick recently confirmed that her Resistance pilot Jess Pava, who fans met in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, didn’t return as she had a scheduling conflict that prevented her from taking part in the adventure. The actress also confirmed that she was disappointed that she didn’t get to come back for the film, but that she enjoys knowing the character has a long-lasting legacy in comic book and novel adventures.

“I was supposed to come back for the last film, and I don’t actually remember what I was filming at the time, but I wasn’t available,” Henwick shred with ComicBookMovie. “It did suck because I would have loved to come back for that small piece, but as you say, she lives on in the comic books and I think there’s a couple of spinoff books as well that she’s in.”

She added, “It’s kind of fun for me to Google ‘Jess Pava’ and check in with her. It’s like seeing an old friend and finding out what she’s been up to. It’s just weird because she looks like me.”

This isn’t the first time Henwick has addressed her character in the galaxy far, far away, as she confirmed earlier this year that, despite fans not seeing her in Rise of Skywalker, Jess survived the events of that experience.

“Yes! Jess Pava is alive and well,” Henwick confirmed with The Hollywood Reporter earlier this year. “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.”

Henwick also confirmed that when she was originally in talks to join The Force Awakens, she was attempting to score the part of Rey, with Daisy Ridley ultimately securing that character. However, director J.J. Abrams was so impressed with Henwick’s abilities, Jess Pava was created specifically for her.

“I was auditioning for a different character, actually, so I spent six months auditioning for that character,” the actress explained. “And then, at the end, J.J. said, ‘I want you to be in the film, but I want to write a character for you.’ That’s how Jess Pava was created. So, it was a very, very long experience. It’s hard because I’ve been doing this long enough to know that you go in, audition, put it to the back of your mind, don’t think about it and don’t get emotionally invested. But, after six months, you can’t help but just desperately want it. I’m also such a big J.J. fan. So, I was a mess at the end of those six months.”

Stay tuned for details on the continued adventures of Jess Pava in the Star Wars series.

Do you wish we had seen the character in The Rise of Skywalker? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!