There’s something deliciously ironic about John Boyega—a man who wielded a lightsaber across three divisive films—admitting that the rival franchise does something better. Not everything, mind you. Just one thing. But when that admission comes at Dragon Con, the annual Atlanta pilgrimage where fans debate canon like theologians, it lands differently.
“In Star Trek, they give you time to have discussions,” Boyega said during his panel, voice carrying the weight of someone who’s been both celebrated and sidelined by the very saga he loves. “I think there’s something Star Wars can learn from that, actually.”
It’s a small concession. Almost throwaway. But coming from the actor who played Finn—a character who went from stormtrooper defector to… well, whatever happened in The Rise of Skywalker—it feels like commentary wrapped in diplomacy. Because Boyega’s never been one to bite his tongue about how the sequel trilogy fumbled his arc. He’s called out the racism embedded in a franchise “so white that a Black person existing in [it] was something”. He’s lamented the sidelining of Finn, especially after Disney teased a Jedi arc that never materialized.
And yet. And yet. He’s also the guy who’ll go home after criticizing Star Wars and fire up Battlefront II just to feel better.
The Trek He Won’t Touch
Make no mistake—Boyega’s not defecting. “I’m an old school Star Wars fan, and if you’re a Trekkie and you’ve met me at the booths, you would find that I would mention that I don’t like Star Trek,” he said with the kind of bluntness that gets clipped and memed within minutes. His reasoning? “On the Trekkie side, they like to talk about it. On the Star Wars side, we just get active. With Star Wars, you’ve got to talk while the war is going on”.
It’s a fair take. Trek is chattier—more conference rooms, fewer explosions. Wars does prefer blaster fire to diplomatic summits. But here’s where it gets interesting: Boyega’s two biggest Star Wars films were directed by J.J. Abrams, the same filmmaker who helmed Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)—two movies that Trek purists accused of being too Wars-ified, too reliant on action and spectacle at the expense of the philosophical debates that defined Roddenberry’s vision.
And on the flip side? The most acclaimed Star Wars project of the Disney era—Andor—is the one that feels most Trek-like. It lingers. It debates. It lets Cassian Andor sit in a prison and deconstruct systems of oppression for entire episodes. It’s the kind of narrative patience Boyega’s describing, and fans loved it for exactly that reason.
So maybe the genres are swapping DNA. Maybe the boundaries are blurrier than the convention panels admit.
The Clarification Tour
Boyega’s Dragon Con comments arrived just weeks after another panel—this one at Fan Expo Philadelphia—where the actor took time to course-correct years of perceived resentment. “It’s really weird when you say stuff, and it goes through the filter of hungry journalists who need to have their blogs noticed,” he explained, frustration evident. “Sometimes, they articulate things that are far-fetched from the truth.”
His point? You can hate elements of something and still love it. “Why would we be debating about what we dislike if we disliked the whole entire thing?” he asked. “We just would be like, that’s trash, we don’t care. But we debate as Star Wars fans. We go back and forth about things because we love it, and we want it to be treated well”.
It’s an essential distinction, and one that gets lost in the noise of fandom discourse. Boyega’s criticisms—about Finn’s wasted potential, about the sequel trilogy’s lack of cohesive planning, about the racism baked into certain fan reactions—aren’t rejections of Star Wars. They’re pleas for it to be better. And his willingness to return as Finn hinges on that same hope: “It’s dependent on treating the character well, it’s dependent on fulfilling the arc that was teased quite a lot during the process”.
Translation: Show me the Jedi story you promised, or don’t bother calling.
The Rey Movie Question
Rumors continue to swirl about whether Boyega will reprise Finn in Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy’s upcoming film, tentatively titled Star Wars: New Jedi Order. The project, centered on Daisy Ridley‘s Rey rebuilding the Jedi Order fifteen years after The Rise of Skywalker, remains in development with script revisions ongoing. When asked at Fan Expo Philadelphia if he’d spoken to Ridley about returning, Boyega offered a playful “maybe” with a long pause—the kind of non-answer that fuels speculation for months.
But the conditions are clear. “Everybody knows, it’s dependent on treating the character well,” he reiterated. After a trilogy that reduced Finn to comic relief and unfulfilled Force sensitivity, can you blame him for wanting guarantees?
There’s also a Finn and Jannah book in the works, which suggests Lucasfilm hasn’t entirely forgotten the character. Whether that translates to screen time remains to be seen, especially with the studio’s theatrical slate in constant flux—Taika Waititi’s project reportedly scrapped, Rogue Squadron delayed indefinitely, and the Rey film still awaiting script approval.
What Trek Really Does Better
Back to Boyega’s original point: the discussions. Star Trek built its legacy on moral quandaries that couldn’t be solved with phasers. Episodes where Kirk debates the Prime Directive, where Picard philosophizes about consciousness, where Sisko grapples with war crimes in the name of survival. The dialogue is the action.
Star Wars, by contrast, has historically favored mythic simplicity. Light versus dark. Rebellion versus Empire. The Force as mystical shorthand rather than interrogated doctrine. It works—until it doesn’t. Until you realize the sequel trilogy never paused to let its characters sit with the weight of their choices. Until Finn’s defection from the First Order gets one scene of trauma processing before he’s running through explosions again.
Andor proved Star Wars can do the slower, thornier storytelling. But it’s the exception, not the rule. And Boyega—who experienced firsthand how fast his character’s arc could be sidelined—knows the difference between pacing and panic.
“I’m a lightsaber guy,” he concluded, reinforcing his loyalty even while naming the flaw. It’s the kind of nuanced fandom the franchise desperately needs more of: critical, hopeful, and unwilling to pretend perfection exists on either side of the Trek-Wars divide.
What Boyega’s Comments Reveal About Star Wars Storytelling
Trek’s Patience vs. Wars’ Momentum
Boyega’s right that Star Trek prioritizes dialogue-heavy exploration of ideas, while Star Wars barrels forward with kinetic energy. The question is whether Wars can adopt Trek’s contemplative pacing without losing what makes it Wars—mythic urgency and visual spectacle.
The Sequel Trilogy’s Planning Problem
His criticism that Finn’s arc was “teased quite a lot” but never delivered speaks to the larger issue plaguing the sequels: J.J. Abrams and Rian Johnson‘s competing visions created narrative whiplash. No amount of action can compensate for incomplete character development.
Criticism as Love Language
Boyega’s clarification that his complaints come from affection, not rejection, is crucial. Healthy fandoms debate. Toxic ones demand silence or worship. His willingness to both critique and play Battlefront II at home captures the messy reality of loving imperfect art.
The Rey Movie Depends on Script Quality
Whether Boyega returns for New Jedi Order hinges entirely on whether Lucasfilm can deliver a story worthy of Finn’s untapped potential. After years of false starts and script rewrites, fans (and Boyega) are right to be cautious about promises.
FAQ
Does John Boyega actually hate Star Trek?
Not really—he just prefers the action-forward pacing of Star Wars over Trek’s discussion-heavy approach. His comments are more about genre preference than genuine disdain, though he’s made it clear he won’t cross franchise lines professionally.
Will Finn appear in the upcoming Rey movie?
Maybe. Boyega expressed openness to returning at Fan Expo Philadelphia, but only if Lucasfilm finally delivers the Jedi arc they teased throughout the sequel trilogy. With Star Wars: New Jedi Order still in script development, nothing’s confirmed.
What did Boyega mean by Star Wars being “the most whitest, elite space”?
He was calling out the franchise’s history of centering white characters and relegating actors of color to supporting roles. His point: fans celebrated Lando and Mace Windu as tokens, but reacted with hostility when a Black actor like Boyega was positioned as a lead.
Why does Boyega think Star Wars should learn from Star Trek?
Because Trek allows time for characters to process, debate, and explore ideas through dialogue—something Wars often sacrifices in favor of nonstop action. Andor proved Star Wars can handle slower, more introspective storytelling, but it remains an outlier in the franchise.
