The 'Obi-Wan Kenobi' actor came to his co-star's defense, telling fans there's 'no place for racism in this world.'
Ewan McGregor is speaking out after his Obi-Wan Kenobi co-star, Moses Ingram, has become the subject of racist remarks and comments on social media. In a video posted to the official Star Wars Twitter account, the 51-year-old actor says he is heartbroken by the “horrendous” messages Ingram has received since the limited series premiered on Disney+.
“It seems that some of the fan base, from this influential fan base, have decided to attack Moses Ingram online and send her the most horrendous, racist DMs. And I heard some of them this morning and it just broke my heart,” McGregor says.
He then continues by saying, “Moses is a brilliant actor. She’s a brilliant woman. And she’s absolutely amazing in this series. She brings so much to the series. She brings so much to the franchise.”
On the show, Ingram plays a ruthless Inquisitor named Reva who is determined to hunt down Kenobi (McGregor), who has gone into hiding in the ten years since the events of the third prequel film, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith.
“And it just sickened me to my stomach to hear this has been happening,” McGregor says, adding that “as the leading actor in the series, as executive producer on the series, that we stand with Moses. We love Moses. And if you’re sending her bullying messages, you’re no Star Wars fan in my mind. There’s no place for racism in this world.”
“I totally stand with Moses,” the actor concludes.
As ET previously reported on Tuesday, the official Star Wars social media accounts also spoke out in support of Ingram.
“We are proud to welcome Moses Ingram to the Star Wars family and excited for Reva's story to unfold. If anyone intends to make her feel in any way unwelcome, we have only one thing to say: we resist,” the statement read. “There are more than 20 million sentient species in the Star Wars galaxy, don't choose to be a racist.”
Earlier that morning, Ingram took to her Instagram Story to share the hateful messages she's been receiving since joining the franchise. The Yale Drama School alum shared screenshots of the messages, which included: “You suck loser. You're a diversity hire and you won't be loved or remembered for this acting role” and “You're [sic] days are numbered.”
In a video to her followers, Ingram revealed that these messages were a small example of the negativity she's received online. “Long story short, there are hundreds of those, hundreds. And I also see those of you out there who put on a cape for me and that really does mean the world to me, because there's nothing anybody can do about this,” Ingram said.
“Thank you to the people who show up for me in the comments, in the places that I'm not gonna put myself,” she added. “To the rest of y'all, y'all weird.”
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