Felicity Jones Talks About Training For ROGUE ONE and Jyn Erso's Place in The Rebellion

Following last night's reveal of the newest trailer for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (check out a breakdown of screenshots and everything you might have missed in it right here), Entertainment Weekly caught up with actress Felicity Jones and spoke with her about what it was like training for the movie and what her character Jyn Erso's place is in the Rebellion.

“I’m laughing now, but at the time, it was physically exhausting. It took a lot of hours of practice, and I worked with a kung fu coach, and I learned to fight, even though I never thought beating up Stormtroopers was something I’d be doing in my job. It came through hard work and lots of practice and rehearsals. Physically, [Jyn is] smaller than everyone else around her, but…when someone has something they believe in, that’s what powers them, that’s what motivates them, that’s what can give someone enormous strength.”

I still remember being blown away by Jones' performance in Like Crazy at the Sundance Film Festival a few years ago, and I never would have thought that her star power would rise quite this quickly and she'd end up in a Star Wars movie. I know a lot of people still complain that they don't think Gal Gadot is physical enough to play Wonder Woman, and while Jones is smaller than Gadot, at least Jyn is a new character and she doesn't have to contend with people saying she's a bad fit for the role because she isn't jacked enough.

Jyn is the latest in the line of female characters who have played important roles in galactic events in the Star Wars universe, and the second behind The Force Awakens' Rey to be the main character in a Star Wars movie. What does Jones think about the role of women in the Rebellion?

“I would say there’s a huge amount of respect for women in the Rebellion. Mon Mothma is ultimately, for Jyn, someone she looks up to. So even as the film opens [Jyn] has a very strong female role model in front of her, and someone she respects. It’s vital. As we’re seeing in politics, it is a world where women are becoming leaders of nations, and films should be reflecting that.”

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story hits theaters on December 16th.