Rogue One: Diego Luna ‘got emotional’over fan story about film’s diversity

In Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Diego Luna plays Captain Cassian Andor, one of the Rebels who embark on a mission to steal the plans for the Death Star. The Mexican actor was just one member of the film’s diverse cast (which also includes Donnie Yen, Riz Ahmed, and Forest Whitaker), and he’s hearing directly from Star Wars fans impacted by seeing that kind of representation on screen.

Luna shared one such heartwarming story via Twitter on Tuesday, from a Tumblr user who said she took her Mexican father to see Rogue One because she wanted him to see a hero character in a blockbuster film who had an accent like his.

“When Diego Luna’s character came on screen and started speaking, my dad nudged me and said, ‘he has a heavy accent,’” riveralwaysknew wrote. “I was like, ‘Yup.’ When the film was over and we were walking to the car, he returns to me and says, ‘Did you noticed that he had an accent?’ And I said, ‘Yeah dad, just like yours.'”

After inquiring about the film’s box office success and if people liked it, she continued, her father asked why Luna didn’t change his accent.

“I told him that Diego has openly talked about keeping his accent and how proud he is of it,” she added. “And my dad was silent for a while and then he said, ‘And he was a main character.’ And I said, ‘He was.’ And my dad was so happy. As we drove home he started telling me about other Mexican actors that he thinks should be in movies in America. Representation matters.”

It’s a story that touched Luna, too. “I got emotional reading this!” he tweeted.

See his message with the full Rogue One story below.

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