Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Star Naomi Ackie Calls Jannah “Fierce” and “Relevant”

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will wrap up the Skywalker saga, but it’ll introduce some new characters in the process. One is Jannah, played by Naomi Ackie. Speaking to The Los Angeles Times, Ackie describes Jannah as “fierce. She’s got a lot of history involved with the issues in the film. Once you find out her story, you’re rooting for her and you can understand why she’s fighting.” Ackie also explained how this new character fits into the saga’s finale. “It means that whatever characters [are introduced] now have to add to wrapping up the story, because we know this is the end of the Skywalker saga,” she says. :Her importance to the story has to be relevant — and it feels relevant, definitely, for some of the characters and for the larger picture.”

There’s not much known about Jannah. She appears in the new The Rise of Skywalker trailer wielding a bow and riding on an Orbak. “When you find out more about Jannah’s history and where she comes from, it makes a lot of sense,” Ackie says. “That’s all I can say, is the bow makes sense.”

Director JJ Abrams has spoken about how The Rise of Skywalker is intended to be the capstone to the entire Skywalker saga. “Endings are the thing that scare me the most,” Abrams said. “This is about bringing this thing to a close in a way that is emotional and meaningful and also satisfying in terms of actually answering [as many] questions as possible. So if years from now, someone’s watching these movies, all nine of them, they’re watching a story that is as cohesive as possible.”

At the D3 Expo earlier this year, Abrams offered some additional details about what fans can expect from the new film. “The movie doesn’t pick up immediately after the last film,” he said. “Some time has passed. This movie is an adventure the group goes on together. One of the great things about getting to work on the movie is the dynamic between all of the characters. They’re amazing together, and it’s something I’m excited for you all to see.”

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker stars Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, Billie Lourd, Naomi Ackie, Richard E. Grant, Keri Russell, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Billy Dee Williams, and Carrie Fisher.

Are you excited about Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker? Let us know how you feel about it in the comments. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker opens in theaters on December 20th.

Star Wars is also headed to the Disney+ streaming service. The series The Mandalorian will debut on Disney+’s launch day, November 12th. A show following Obi-Wan Kenobi is in the works, with Ewan MacGregor returning to the role. A series about Rogue One‘s Cassian Andor is also in development.