We love watching kick-ass women, and Gwendoline Christie loves playing them. It’s a win-win. The actress who rose to fame playing warrior Brienne of Tarth in a little show called Game of Thrones can now be seen portraying another kick-ass character, Captain Phasma in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
In an interview with People Magazine in this week’s issue, Christie revealed that it was none other than General Leia herself Carrie Fisher, that inspired a career full of inspirational and tough characters. “I loved Princess Leia, and that even in my infant mind I remember thinking, ‘She’s a different kind of woman to the women I see in films,’” she told the magazine. “I think it must have been quite forming.”
“I’ve been lucky enough to play a couple of parts of women who are very driven and somewhat unconventional,” she added. “I love playing women who kick ass!” – And we love watching you slay, Christie. Now, years later the actress is a part of the universe that introduced her to the character that helped mold her career. “I said to the people around me, ‘So, is this really happening?’” She recalls. “Walking onto the set with that incredible costume, the sets were so enormous and so detailed, everything seemed real … and I was in it”.
“I was struck by how incredible it looked, but also I liked that it was stormtrooper armor. It hadn’t been sexualized or feminized in any way”. She added. “I thought, ‘That is interesting. That’s very modern’”. Now, future generations will look to her for inspiration, and hopefully she will influence young girls around the globe the same way Fisher did and continues to do – and remind them that women can be just as badass as men. “People talk about having dreams come true, this is really a lot of young dreams come true”.
#Peace.Love.GwendolineChristie
