ABC/Heidi Gutman(NEW YORK) — Felicity Jones was a Star Wars fan long before she was tapped to star in the latest installment in the series, Rogue One.
The Academy Award-nominated actress stopped by Good Morning America Monday to discuss the new movie and her love for the franchise.
“I remember watching when I was a little girl,” Jones said. “I’d watch at my cousin’s house with my older brother, and for some reason we’d be really close to the TV watching it. We would watch it on VHS. I just remember the opening titles going up the screen.”
Incidentally, the Star Wars opening title words — known as the “crawl” — provided the basis of the plot of Rogue One: Rebel spies have stolen the plans to the Empire’s dreaded Death Star.
In Rogue One, Jones plays Jyn Erso, the woman who leads the band of rebels who snatch the plans. “It was the opportunity to play a kick-a– girl,” Jones said. “She’s a real live wire. She’s got real spirit, and it was a just a fantastic character to make.”
Jones said if she could build an army with any three Star Wars characters, she’d choose Chewbacca, Han Solo and Rey. Rey, played by Daisy Ridley in last year’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens, was an equally strong female character.
Jones tells ABC Radio that the fans’ excitement about Rogue One, the first “stand-alone” Star Wars movie, was felt throughout the cast and crew during the filming.
“You get so much from the fans who are so supportive of it that you can’t be cynical, and you can’t be jaded — you just enjoy every minute of it,” she says.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story hits theaters Dec. 16 from The Walt Disney Co., the parent company of ABC News.
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