Obi-Wan Kenobi actor Moses Ingram has revealed she has received “hundreds” of racist messages since appearing in the new Star Wars show, with her co-star Ewan McGregor issuing a strong statement condemning abusive fans, saying “if you’re sending her bullying messages, you’re no Star Wars fan”.
In the new Disney+ series, Ingram plays the Third Sister, Reva Sevander, who is tasked by Darth Vader to hunt McGregor’s Kenobi. On Tuesday on Instagram she shared just a few examples of the racist abuse directed at her on social media since the show began.
“There’s nothing anybody can do about this,” Ingram said in an Instagram video. “There’s nothing anybody can do to stop this hate. I question my purpose in even being here in front of you saying that this is happening. I don’t really know.”
“The thing that bothers me is this feeling inside of myself, that no one has told me, but this feeling that I have to shut up and take it, that I have to grin and bear it. And I’m not built like that. So, I wanted to come on and say thank you to the people who show up for me in the comments and the places that I’m not going to put myself. And to the rest of y’all, y’all weird.”
A personal message from Ewan McGregor. pic.twitter.com/rJSDmj663K
— Star Wars (@starwars) June 1, 2022
On Tuesday night, a video message from McGregor was shared on the official Star Wars Twitter account, in which he strongly condemned the abuse.
“It seems that some of the fan base has decided to attack Moses Ingram online and send her the most horrendous, racist [direct messages]. I heard some of them this morning, and it just broke my heart,” McGregor said.
“Moses is a brilliant actor. She is a brilliant woman. And she is absolutely amazing in this series. She brings so much to the series, she brings so much to the franchise. And it just sickened me to my stomach that this had been happening,” he continued.
“I just want to say, as the lead actor in the series, as the executive producer on the series, that we stand with Moses. We love Moses. And if you’re sending her bullying messages, you’re no Star Wars fan in my mind. There’s no place for racism in this world. And I totally stand with Moses.”
“There are more than 20m sentient species in the Star Wars galaxy, don’t choose to be a racist,” a message shared on the Star Wars account reads. “We are proud to welcome Moses Ingram to the Star Wars family and excited for Reva’s story to unfold. If anyone intends to make her feel in any way unwelcome, we have only one thing to say: we resist.”
We are proud to welcome Moses Ingram to the Star Wars family and excited for Reva’s story to unfold. If anyone intends to make her feel in any way unwelcome, we have only one thing to say: we resist. pic.twitter.com/lZW0yvseBk
— Star Wars (@starwars) May 31, 2022
Racists have no place in our community. If you feel "attacked" by that simple statement, smash that unsubscribe button.
— Star Wars Explained (@StarWarsExplain) May 31, 2022
Star Wars actors Kelly Marie Tran and John Boyega also endured racist abuse from fans after they were cast in the sequel trilogy.
Obi-Wan Kenobi has been a hit with critics and audiences, becoming Disney+’s most-watched premiere for an original series.
