Star Wars: The Acolyte’s Carrie-Anne Moss Explains How The Matrix Help Prepare Her to Play a Jedi

Star Wars: The Acolyte is premiering on Disney+ next month, and the first reactions to the series have been extremely positive. The new Disney+ series is set to take place roughly a full century before the events of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, and features a star-studded lineup of actors, including Carrie-Anne Moss. Of course, this isn’t Moss’ first foray into sci-fi. The actor is best known for playing Trinity in The Matrix films. Recently, the star spoke with Empire and explained how The Matrix helped her play a Jedi in The Acolyte. 

“Yeah, I think all of my history of learning to fight and- This was very different though, because I was by myself. I had always done [The Matrix] with my co-stars, and there’s a certain energy,” Moss explained. “[On The Acolyte] I was on my own, with my team, which was great because I got to ignite and access a part of myself. I was like, ‘I want to do everything.’ I loved it more than I can remember loving doing something in a long time. ‘I’m strong. I can learn this. I can show up, and I can find that containment.’ With fighting, it’s very hard for me not to make faces – to constantly bring it back in, where it’s almost effortless. It looks effortless, and yet it’s not. [laughs] That was fun to play with. I told [showrunner Leslye Headland], ‘I do not want to be making a lot of faces. I want it to be right.’”

“It was tricky,” she added of having to fight in Jedi robes. “My physical blocks actually came from the costume. It’s really important to practice in the costumes. They’re heavy. There was a boning in the bodice – actually the costume injured me the most, because I didn’t have any movement in a certain area of my back, in my shoulders. That was something I had to do a lot of recovery with. The costume gives you the character. It definitely gave the image, but to actually be free within the fighting, it was a challenge. Between action and cut, you go into this zone – it’s only when you go back to your hotel room, you’re like, ‘Oh my gosh. This is really hurting.’”

Star Wars: The Acolyte debuts on June 4th, exclusively on Disney+.