Kathleen Kennedy — Rey is Extremely Significant to Star Wars

As we draw ever closer to the worldwide theatrical debut of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, more and more information about the film and its characters are beginning to trickle in. Today’s news comes via the Guardian, who interviewed Lucasfilm President and producer — Kathleen Kennedy — at the Most Powerful Women Summit in Washington, D.C.

The Guardian spoke with Kennedy regarding the emerging female role in not only Star Wars, but Hollywood, as a whole.

"“Having a balance of men and women in the room changes the story, the dialogue, the point of view. In a weird way, a few years ago there were more, the numbers never climb significantly but more women were running studios than there are today.”"

As for Rey’s involvement in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and what she means to the newest trilogy in the Star Wars saga, Kennedy was a bit more hush-hushed on the subject, not wanting to spoil the film for anyone. However, she did say that Daisy Ridley’s character — Rey — could be classified as extremely significant, which as the Guardian notes, further fuels speculation that Rey is going to be a Scion of the Skywalker legacy.

Kathleen Kennedy also commented about George Lucas’ creating the character of Princess Leia. Saying that it was a fairly revolutionary decision at the time, to cast a female lead in a cast chocked full of alpha-males. She also praised Disney for being supportive of the process:

"“We could have been pushing a giant boulder uphill if Disney didn’t support us.”"

We’ll see how important Rey is to the newest batch of Star Wars films, when The Force Awakens hits theaters on December 18, and I for one, sincerely hope she is in fact a “Scion of the Skywalker family,” a Jedi like her father before her, like his father before him.

Next: The Force Awakens Won't Be As Long As We Thought