This post contains spoilers for Obi-Wan Kenobi, now streaming on Disney+.
Since Obi-Wan Kenobi debuted on Disney+, Star Wars fans have been given plenty of reasons to be delighted. There's Darth Vader and Obi-Wan Kenobi facing off again and the brilliant new villain Reva, played by Moses Ingram. However, the biggest and, arguably, best surprise in Obi-Wan Kenobi is the return of Leia Organa, played to perfection by then-nine-year-old actor Vivien Lyra Blair. Yet, considering the state of the Star Wars fandom as of late, it's important for fans to reaffirm their full support for this young lady.
If you have ever spoken to a Star Wars fan, you know that they are group that’s almost impossibly hard to please. Since Return of the Jedi hit theaters in 1983, there has been a segment of the fandom that seems to hate whatever the newest Star Wars ‘thing’ is. Obviously, this continued through the prequel trilogy-era into The Clone Wars and all the way through the sequel era to Obi-Wan Kenobi. Not ones to let their disappointment go unheard, some of these people fully fall to the dark side and harass the actors for playing the role that they happen to not like.
Most recently, the ire of these people has fallen on Ingram, who shared racist messages she received via Instagram. Other detractors have, thankfully, not gone so far as to harass the actor playing the role. Yet, they still complain about the villain being “annoying” or “brash,” as if these are not intentional character traits a storyteller might give a villain, so the audience roots against them and roots for the heroes. Yet, it’s not just Ingram who is feeling the brunt of these menaces, but also Vivien Lyra Blair, the actor who plays young Leia. While not many, there have been enough (which is to say: more than zero) people out here harshly criticizing this child for her line readings and general performance. Listen up, Star Wars fans, let's not do this again, okay?
Looking back over 20 years ago, when The Phantom Menace debuted in theaters, the movie pioneered breakthrough visual effects techniques movies still use today. While fans may think nothing of James Spader doing a motion-capture performance for Ultron or Andy Serkis suiting up for Snoke, Ahmed Best is the actor who walked so Ray Fisher’s Cyborg could run. The character, who is pretty beloved by the kids he was created for, is the most-hated character by people old enough to have seen at least one Original Trilogy film in the theaters. In fact, the career that Andy Serkis is enjoying, being the go-to mocap man, in theory should have been Best’s. Yet, the vitriolic and unceasing hate Best received not only negatively impacted his career, it almost ended his life.
In July of 2018, Best posted on Twitter sharing a photo of him and his son. In the tweet, he wrote that at the time of The Phantom Menace’s release, he almost took his life. He never mentioned Star Wars or the movie by name, but it’s clear what he was referring to. So many fans think that when they unload with harsh words about some film they don’t like that it’s a victimless expression. It’s not, especially in the age of social media. In fact, Best’s The Phantom Menace co-star Jake Lloyd, then 10 years old, was also relentlessly bullied and harassed for his performance as young Anakin.
Still, Star Wars fans did not learn their lesson from this tragic mistreatment of artists who simply wanted to create something wonderful for fans. In 2017 after the release of The Last Jedi, both of the lead women actors in the movie—Daisy Ridley and Kelly Marie Tran—were run off social media by people who would not stop harassing them for their performances. Ridley has not really spoken about it at length, instead focusing on her other projects. Tran, however, wrote a powerful essay in The Washington Post in 2018 (the same year Best revealed his struggle) about how being a child actor is already tough enough without the onslaught of social media hate.
Which brings us back to Vivien Lyra Blair. Thankfully, it seems the vast majority of fans are truly loving her remarkable performance. One thing most people note is how at times the young actor seems to be channeling the late Carrie Fisher in her mannerisms and expressions. If Blair is intentionally doing this, that alone proves she’s an acting powerhouse who will one day take home all the statues. However, if it’s not intentional, it might be just because Fisher was always a child-at-heart, even when in character as Leia, that fans see their princess in this little girl.
If someone thinks she isn’t doing a good job they are wrong, but it’s a free galaxy. (Thanks Luke and Rey Skywalker!) Yet, even if fans find her performance lacking for some reason, what they should not do is bully a child because some people don't like her role in a show about space wizards with laser swords. The only thing any fan, reviewer, critic, or social media poster should ever say about her are supportive and positive things. Hate the show, Disney, or Star Wars as a franchise all you want. But the era of people bullying actors, especially literal children, needs to end immediately.
People are passionate about Star Wars because George Lucas constructed a story built on mythic traditions that trick our minds into storing them alongside our most treasured beliefs and ideologies. It is both okay to love or not love a movie or TV show. But when the latter manifests as bullying towards people who had no say in how the story was shaped, it’s shameful and needs to stop. Help us, Star Wars fans, you’re our only hope.
Watch Vivien Lyra Blair steal the audience’s and Ben’s hearts on Wednesdays, when new episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi debut on Disney+.