Star Wars: Jodie Comer Finally Addresses Playing Rey’s Mom in The Rise of Skywalker

Ever since audiences met Rey in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, they wondered who her parents were, only for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker to feature Killing Eve star Jodie Comer appear as Rey’s mother, with Comer reflecting on the experience as “spectacular.” Understandably, she had to keep her involvement in the galaxy far, far away a secret for an extended period of time, but given her previous acting experiences, she recalled how impressed she was by the ways in which the film used practical methods to bring fantastical creatures to life, especially given the ways in which many films were quick to utilize green-screen techniques.

“It was spectacular,” Comer detailed to Entertainment Weekly. “But I had to keep that a secret for a long, long, long time.”

She also reflected on her involvement being “the most peculiar, incredible experience.”

Comer wasn’t the only performer to appear in The Rise of Skywalker with little more than an unexplained cameo, as Rey’s father was played by Dunkirk actor Billy Howle. Both The Force Awakens and Star Wars: The Last Jedi featured cameos that were both obscure and overt, with Comer and Howle’s involvement possibly being so perplexing because so few details have emerged in the years since the film’s release about how they secured the roles. Other cameos, for example, have been explained as being favors to friends of the filmmakers, yet the cast and crew of The Rise of Skywalker have kept quiet on how the pair earned the coveted roles.

With her starring role in spy series Killing Eve being Comer’s breakout success, she recalled how impressed she was by the information she learned about how the movie came to life.

“Hearing the detail that goes into the makeup and the costumes, it was so eye-opening,” the actor admitted. “Speaking about green screen and visual effects, when I got Star Wars, I was like, ‘They’ll probably be a lot that I don’t see.’ But these kinds of figures, their mouths move and they were remote-controlled and there was so much there that you didn’t have to imagine.”

Given that Rey’s journey seemingly concluded in the final entry in the Skywalker Saga, we likely shouldn’t count on seeing Comer making any future appearances in the franchise.

Comer can next be seen in Free Guy, which hits theaters on August 13th.

What did you think of Comer’s appearance in the movie? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!