Daisy Ridley played a major role in relaunching the Star Wars franchise with The Force Awakens in 2015 and has reprised her role as Rey in the upcoming The Last Jedi. With such valuable experiences under her belt, one might assume that playing governess Mary Debenham in another major venture would not be challenging for the actress. However, the 25-year-old actress admitted that she feared playing the role in Kenneth Branagh’s period thriller, Murder on the Orient Express.
Ridley said, “I remember finishing my first-ever film [and thinking], ‘Oh my God, this is so great, how could this ever be topped?’ And then I did my second film, and I was like, ‘Oh my God, this is so great, how could this ever be topped?’ And then Murder [on the Orient Express] was kind of my first foray into non-spacey films. I was petrified. And we just had the best time. Truly the best time. It was the most wonderful group of people. I felt overwhelmingly lucky to be there and to be able to work with Ken [Kenneth Branagh] and all the other actors. It was just glorious.”
The English actress shares screen with other stars including the likes of Judi Dench, Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Penelope Cruz, Olivia Colman and Willem Dafoe for the film which is based on a Agatha Christie’s novel of the same name.
When asked about her experience with co-actors, she replied, “..when I met Judi and Olivia, they’re like aspirational for me. It’s not starstruck: ‘Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god.’ That’s what I want to be. With Olivia, to get a few years down the line and be even a patch on what she is, I would be so happy. And with Judi, it’s kind of an extension of that. And with those two working together, it was the most amazing combination.”
The film is slated to be released in November this year.
Tuesday, July 21, 2026
