The Star Wars: The Force Awakens cast is led by Daisy Ridley as Rey, John Boyega as Finn, Oscar Isaac as Poe Dameron and Adam Driver as Kylo Ren, with Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill returning as Han Solo, Princess Leia and Luke Skywalker. Lupita Nyong'o, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Max von Sydow and Peter Mayhew complete the top billing. The film, directed by J.J. Abrams, was released in the US on December 18, 2015. This cast stands out because it brings two generations together. Lucasfilm announced the principal cast on April 29, 2014, with seven new names beside six actors from the original films, and Lupita Nyong'o and Gwendoline Christie joined that June. Two of the newer roles, Maz Kanata and Supreme Leader Snoke, are motion capture performances. Below are notes on the twelve top billed actors, the story of the casting and answers to the questions people ask most.
| # | Actor | Character |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Daisy Ridley | Rey |
| 2 | John Boyega | Finn |
| 3 | Oscar Isaac | Poe Dameron |
| 4 | Adam Driver | Kylo Ren |
| 5 | Carrie Fisher | Princess Leia |
| 6 | Harrison Ford | Han Solo |
| 7 | Mark Hamill | Luke Skywalker |
| 8 | Lupita Nyong'o | Maz Kanata |
| 9 | Andy Serkis | Supreme Leader Snoke |
| 10 | Domhnall Gleeson | General Hux |
| 11 | Anthony Daniels | C-3PO |
| 12 | Max von Sydow | Lor San Tekka |
| 13 | Peter Mayhew | Chewbacca |
| 14 | Gwendoline Christie | Captain Phasma |
| 15 | Pip Andersen | Lead Stormtrooper |
| 16 | Simon Pegg | Unkar Plutt |
| 17 | Kiran Shah | Teedo |
| 18 | Sasha Frost | Jakku Villager |
| 19 | Pip Torrens | Colonel Kaplan |
| 20 | Andrew Jack | Major Ematt |
| 21 | Rocky Marshall | Colonel Datoo |
| 22 | Greg Grunberg | Snap Wexley |
| 23 | Emun Elliott | Brance |
| 24 | Brian Vernel | Bala-Tik |
Billing order from the film's credits (TMDB). Actors with a Cinvibe page and characters with a character page are linked.
Also in the cast: Yayan Ruhian (Tasu Leech), Sebastian Armesto (Lieutenant Mitaka), Maisie Richardson-Sellers (Korr Sella), Warwick Davis (Wollivan), Cailey Fleming (Young Rey), Mark Stanley (Knight of Ren), Ken Leung (Admiral Statura), Iko Uwais (Razoo Quin-Fee), Anna Brewster (Bazine Netal), Harriet Walter (Dr. Kalonia), Tim Rose (Admiral Ackbar), Erik Bauersfeld (Admiral Ackbar (voice)), Mike Quinn (Nien Nunb), Bill Kipsang Rotich (Nein Nunb (voice)), Michael Giacchino (FN-3181), Nigel Godrich (FN-9330), Judah Friedlander (Bar Patron), Victor McGuire (Bar Patron), Miltos Yerolemou (Bar Patron), Francesca Longrigg (Bar Patron), D.C. Barns (Bar Patron), Matt Johnson (Bar Patron), Billie Lourd (Lieutenant Connix), Leanne Best (Min Sakul), Crystal Clarke (Ensign Goode), Jeffery Kissoon (Rear Admiral Guich), Claudia Sermbezis (Lema Eelyak), Gerald W. Abrams (Captain Cypress), Jim McGrath (Vice Admiral Resdox), Philicia Saunders (Tabala Zo), Morgan Dameron (Commodore Meta), Jessica Henwick (Jess Testor), Tosin Cole (Lieutenant Bastian), James McArdle (Niv Lek), Stefan Grube (Yolo Ziff), Dixie Arnold (Resistance Soldier), Hannah John-Kamen (First Order Officer), Tom Edden (First Order Officer), Kate Fleetwood (First Order Officer), Richard Riddell (First Order Officer), Jefferson Hall (First Order Officer), Thomas Brodie-Sangster (First Order Officer), Jack Laskey (First Order Officer), Brian Herring (BB-8), Dave Chapman (BB-8), Jimmy Vee (R2-D2 (uncredited)), Cecep Arif Rahman (Crokind Shand (uncredited)), Ian Whyte (Bollie Prindel / Roodown (uncredited)), Daniel Craig (Stormtrooper (uncredited)), Ewan McGregor (Obi-Wan Kenobi (voice) (uncredited)), Frank Oz (Yoda (archive sound) (uncredited)), Alec Guinness (Obi-Wan Kenobi (archive sound) (uncredited)), Tom Kane (Hosnian Citizen / Starkiller Technician (voice) (uncredited)), Catherine Taber (Hangar Officer / Starkiller Technician (voice) (uncredited)), Matthew Wood (Ello Asty / Quiggold / Niima Thug (voice) (uncredited)), Sam Witwer (Stormtroopers / Star Destroyer PA Announcer / Star Destroyer Officer (voice) (uncredited)), Meredith Salenger (Resistance Technician (voice) (uncredited)), James Arnold Taylor (First Order Stormtrooper (uncredited)), Michael Donovan (Starkiller PA Announcer (voice) (uncredited)), Devon Libran (Hangar Officer / Starkiller Stormtrooper (voice) (uncredited)), Robert Stambler (Red Eyed Sand Alien (voice) (uncredited)), Verona Blue (Resistance PA Announcer (voice) (uncredited)), Fred Tatasciore (Niima Scavenger / Forest Stormtrooper (voice) (uncredited)), Patrick Correll (Resistance Medic (voice) (uncredited)), Karen Huie (Niima Scavenger (voice) (uncredited)), Orly Schuchmacher (Desert Scavenger (voice) (uncredited)), Ben Schwartz (Stormtrooper (uncredited)), Mark Dodson (Niima Scavenger (voice) (uncredited)), Liang Yang (FN-2199 (uncredited)), David Acord (FN-2199 (uncredited)), Jamie B. Chambers (Heavy Gunner Stormtrooper (uncredited)), David M. Santana (First Order Stormtrooper / Snowtrooper Commander / Heavy Gunner Stormtrooper (uncredited)), Kevin Smith (Stormtrooper (voice) (uncredited)), Daran Holliman (Mi'no Teest (uncredited)).
Daisy Ridley plays Rey, a scavenger living alone on the desert planet Jakku who ends up looking after the droid BB-8. Ridley was one of the seven new cast members Lucasfilm named on April 29, 2014, when the principal cast for Star Wars: Episode VII was first announced. Rey is her first role in the saga, and she takes top billing in the credits.
John Boyega plays Finn, a stormtrooper who has lost his nerve, helps Poe Dameron escape and then meets Rey. Boyega was named in the April 29, 2014 announcement alongside Daisy Ridley, and Finn was the first character on screen in the first trailer, released in November 2014. The Force Awakens is his first Star Wars film, and he is billed second.
Oscar Isaac plays Poe Dameron, the Resistance pilot who hides a map fragment to Luke Skywalker's location inside his droid BB-8 before the First Order raids his village. Isaac was confirmed in the April 29, 2014 announcement as one of the new faces of Star Wars: Episode VII, and Poe is his first role in the saga.
Adam Driver plays Kylo Ren in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, a role reported in the trades months before the cast was official. In February 2014, Variety reported that Driver, then known for the series Girls, was close to signing on to play the villain. Lucasfilm confirmed his casting on April 29, 2014, as one of seven new names, and he is billed fourth in the credits.
Carrie Fisher returns as Princess Leia in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. She was one of six actors from the original films whom Lucasfilm confirmed on April 29, 2014, and J.J. Abrams said that seeing the original cast beside the new performers was both thrilling and surreal. She is billed fifth, ahead of Harrison Ford.
Harrison Ford returns as Han Solo in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, where the stolen ship that carries Rey and Finn off Jakku leads them to Han and Chewbacca. Ford broke his ankle on the Millennium Falcon door during filming in summer 2014, and J.J. Abrams said he hurt his back helping Ford out from under the door. Lucasfilm had confirmed Ford's return on April 29, 2014.
Mark Hamill returns as Luke Skywalker, the missing Jedi at the center of the story: the First Order is hunting for him, and Poe Dameron carries part of a map to his location. Hamill was among the six actors from the original films whom Lucasfilm confirmed on April 29, 2014, and he is billed seventh in the credits.
Lupita Nyong'o plays Maz Kanata, a computer generated pirate created through motion capture. Disney announced on June 2, 2014 that Nyong'o, then 31 and a recent Oscar winner for 12 Years a Slave, had joined the cast. The role stayed secret until May 2015, when Vanity Fair revealed Maz as a pirate with no allegiance to either the Resistance or the First Order.
Andy Serkis plays Supreme Leader Snoke, a motion capture performance, and he is billed ninth. Serkis was named in the April 29, 2014 cast announcement. On May 28, 2015, StarWars.com published a previously unseen Annie Leibovitz photo, originally shot for Vanity Fair, that shows him in motion capture gear for the role.
Domhnall Gleeson plays General Hux, one of the new characters introduced in this film. Gleeson was among the seven new cast members Lucasfilm named on April 29, 2014, alongside Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis and Max von Sydow. General Hux is his first Star Wars role, and he is billed tenth in the credits.
Anthony Daniels returns as C-3PO in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and he is billed eleventh in the credits. Daniels was part of the returning group in the April 29, 2014 announcement, together with Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Peter Mayhew and Kenny Baker. That places him among the six actors who link the original films to the new characters.
Max von Sydow plays Lor San Tekka and is billed twelfth in the credits. His casting was announced on April 29, 2014, as one of the seven new names in the principal cast for Star Wars: Episode VII. Lor San Tekka is his first Star Wars role, and he joined a group of actors who were also new to the saga.
The Star Wars: The Force Awakens cast came together in stages through 2014, and Lucasfilm named its principal actors more than a year before the film reached theaters. The first trade report arrived in February 2014, when Variety said Adam Driver was close to signing on as the villain.
On April 29, 2014, StarWars.com announced the principal cast: seven new names (John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson and Max von Sydow) beside six returning actors from the original films. J.J. Abrams called the sight of both groups together both thrilling and surreal. On June 2, 2014, Disney added Lupita Nyong'o and Gwendoline Christie. AP reported at the time that filming was already underway, and Scripps News notes that most of the film was shot at Pinewood Studios in the UK.
Several roles stayed secret long after the names were public. Nyong'o and Serkis both play motion capture characters that were revealed only in 2015, and Abrams has said he took the name Captain Phasma from the horror film Phantasm. For the plot, runtime and release details, see the main page on the force awakens.
Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew and Kenny Baker return from the original Star Wars films, and all six were confirmed in the April 29, 2014 announcement. Five of them sit in the top thirteen of the billing: Ford as Han Solo, Fisher as Princess Leia, Hamill as Luke Skywalker, Daniels as C-3PO and Mayhew as Chewbacca. The new film picks up their story thirty years after the Empire fell.
Most of the plot, though, belongs to the new generation. Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac and Adam Driver hold the top four billing slots as Rey, Finn, Poe Dameron and Kylo Ren, while Lupita Nyong'o, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Gwendoline Christie and Max von Sydow play supporting characters who are all new to the saga. If you want to see where this film sits among the rest of the series, the guide to star wars movies lists every release in order.
| Director | J.J. Abrams |
|---|---|
| Writers | George Lucas, Michael Arndt, Lawrence Kasdan, J.J. Abrams |
| Producers | J.J. Abrams, Bryan Burk, Kathleen Kennedy |
| Music | John Williams |
| Cinematography | Dan Mindel |
Daisy Ridley played Rey in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and she takes top billing in the credits. Rey is a scavenger living alone on the desert planet Jakku, and her life changes when the droid BB-8 comes into her care. Ridley was among the seven new cast members Lucasfilm announced on April 29, 2014.
The main villain in The Force Awakens is Kylo Ren, played by Adam Driver, whom Variety reported in February 2014 was close to signing on for the part. The film also features Supreme Leader Snoke, a motion capture role played by Andy Serkis. On the First Order side, the cast also includes Domhnall Gleeson as General Hux and Gwendoline Christie as Captain Phasma.
Yes, Mark Hamill is in The Force Awakens as Luke Skywalker, billed seventh in the credits. Lucasfilm confirmed his return on April 29, 2014, alongside Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher. The story is built around the search for Luke, since the First Order is hunting the missing Jedi and Poe Dameron hides a map fragment to his location inside BB-8.
Yes, the main original cast returned for The Force Awakens. Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels and Peter Mayhew return as Han Solo, Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker, C-3PO and Chewbacca. Lucasfilm confirmed six returning actors, including Kenny Baker, on April 29, 2014, in the same announcement that introduced the new leads.
Lupita Nyong'o played Maz Kanata in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, using motion capture to create the computer generated pirate. Disney announced her casting on June 2, 2014. The character stayed secret until May 2015, when Vanity Fair described Maz as a pirate with no allegiance to either the Resistance or the First Order.
Gwendoline Christie played Captain Phasma in The Force Awakens. Disney announced her casting on June 2, 2014, the same day as Lupita Nyong'o, when Christie was best known as Brienne of Tarth on Game of Thrones. J.J. Abrams has said he took the name Phasma from the horror film Phantasm.
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