Star Wars actor John Boyega has apologised for “badly-worded” comments he made about abuse on social media.
Boyega, 27, had told Variety that “for those who are not mentally strong, you are weak to believe in every single thing that you read.”
Fans assumed he was criticising his co-star Kelly Marie Tran, 30, who deleted her Instagram posts after some took a dislike to her Star Wars character.
Now Boyega has tweeted: “In no way was I referring to Kelly when I made my comments, although the interviewer mentioned her given the topic.
“I was really speaking from my own perspective throughout this franchise.
“Sometimes I’ve felt strong and sometimes I’ve felt weak. Badly worded though. I apologise.”
In no way was I referring to Kelly when I made my comments although the interviewer mentioned her given the topic. I was really speaking from my own perspective throughout this franchise. Sometimes I’ve felt strong and sometimes I’ve felt weak. Badly worded though. I apologize.
— John Boyega (@JohnBoyega) December 12, 2019
Tran, who played Resistance fighter Rose Tico in 2017 title Star Wars: The Last Jedi, removed her Instagram posts after experiencing months of racist and sexist abuse on social media.
A Vietnamese-American, she was the first woman of colour to play a lead role in the hit series.
In a piece she wrote for the New York Times, entitled I Won’t Be Marginalised by Online Bullying, she said: “Their words seemed to confirm what growing up as a woman and a person of colour already taught me – that I belonged in margins and spaces, valid only as a minor character in their lives and stories.”