Moses Ingram appeared on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” Tuesday night to hype up her part as Jedi-hunter Reva Sevande in Disney+’s “Obi-Wan Kenobi.” “Nerds are cool now,” she said when Kimmel asked the newcomer if she’d reconciled with the fact that, being an official part of the galaxy far, far away, nerds would be following her for the rest of her life. (The host, usually on point, proved himself not part of the tribe when he referred to “warp speed” as Star Wars terminology. Excuse me, Jimmy, “warp speed” is Star Trek; in Star Wars one uses hyperdrives to travel at “lightspeed.”)
Nerds are cool, of course, but even in the Star Wars fandom, there exists a minority—an extremely vocal minority—that is not cool. That fringe group has decided to attack the franchise’s newest star, pummeling her with racist messages via social media.
On the same day as the Kimmel taping (but unmentioned on the show) Ingram decided to turn the tables on those aggressors, first sharing a few of the offensive remarks to Instagram Stories, and then delivering a message of her own, thanking fans who defended her. “I’m not built like that,” she said about “grinning and bearing it.”
“Y’all weird,” she said.
The official Star Wars social media arm also chimed in, reminding its massive following that “there are more than 20 million sentient species in the Star Wars galaxy,” and advising “don’t choose to be a racist.”
There are more than 20 million sentient species in the Star Wars galaxy, don’t choose to be a racist.
— Star Wars (@starwars) May 31, 2022
This is a definitive change in protocol. When the same loudmouth minority spouted their foolish prejudices over the casting of Kelly Marie Tran and John Boyega in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, there was never a condemnation from on high. The unspoken tactic was to just ignore the problem and hope it went away.
If notes from the “official” brand weren’t enough, Ingram’s co-star Ewan McGregor followed up a few hours later with a message of his own.
After thanking fans for making the debut of “Obi-Wan Kenobi” the biggest Disney+ debut, he scolded some of these so-called fans for sending Ingram “the most horrendous, racist DMs.” Calling her “a brilliant woman,” he said she brings “so much to the franchise.”
“If you’re sending her bullying messages, you’re no Star Wars fan in my mind,” he concluded.
A personal message from Ewan McGregor. pic.twitter.com/rJSDmj663K
— Star Wars (@starwars) June 1, 2022
And in a nice example of cross-franchise unity, the official Star Trek account backed Star Wars up, echoing “Strange New Worlds” star Anson Mount when he sent a message of support to Ingram.
Couldn't have said it better, Captain. There’s no room for bigotry in any galaxy. 🖖❤️ https://t.co/wZdIwXZWKS
— Star Trek (@StarTrek) May 31, 2022
You can check out Ingram’s appearance on “Kimmel Live!” here. She tells a cool story about lightsabers.
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