Daisy Ridley and Adam Driver gained fame for playing lead roles in the new Star Wars trilogy. Going by the character names, Rey Skywalker and Kylo Ren aka Ben Solo, the two have a complex relationship onscreen. They are not entirely enemies or good friends and it is sort of hard to deny that they feel some sort of attraction towards each other.
Daisy plays a heroic role while Driver is a villain; they play opposite sides of a war, which makes it complex for them to potentially pursue a romantic connection. Also, their relationship storyline keeps changing - it shifts from more intimate to less intimate, from being allies to enemies; it is never constant, which is a good thing as it keeps fans in suspense. Ridley and Driver have starred in three Star Wars films: The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker.
Here are 15 sweet things about their relationship.
15 Star Wars Was Their First Set Together
Ridley and Driver have an amazing connection, you would think they have done countless films together to establish it; however, Star Wars was their first set together. They both auditioned for The Force Awakens back in 2014 and got the role. According to Bustle, their great chemistry is the result of their close relationship in real life.
14 They Are Always Complimenting Each Other
Ridley and Driver are always complimenting each other especially during those interviews they are asked how they feel about working together. In one interview on Disney, the two could not stop praising each other. Ridley said Driver is an incredible actor and she cannot speak highly enough about him, and Driver gushed about how great it is to work with Ridley.
13 They Both Did Not Want To Pursue Careers In Acting
Before Ridley and Driver found themselves on the set of Star Wars, they both did not want to pursue acting as a career. Driver was a Marine until he dislocated his sternum while mountain biking while Ridley wanted to be a zoologist as CheatSheet reveals. Fortunately, they both decided to give acting a try and they fell in love with it.
12 They Joke Around A Lot
Ridley and Driver seem to have an easy-going relationship with each other. They joke around a lot and of course, they enjoy laughing together. During their interviews, one of them usually has to share a joke and the other follows in on it, as Bustle reports. Ridley also refers to Driver as her bestie.
11 They Are Not Dating In Real Life
We know many fans think Rey and Kylo, Reylo (a combination of their screen names) are dating in real life probably due to their onscreen chemistry; however they are not. Driver has been married to Joanna Tucker since 2013 and people recently spotted Ridley wearing a diamond ring on that finger. Rumors are sparking around that she is engaged to Tom Bateman as Eonline reports, but she has neither confirmed nor denied.
10 Filming Developed Their Friendship
Ridley once admitted that she knew Driver way before they started filming together but their relationship as friends blossomed when they started filming together. According to Bustle, the two went from sharing the screen to real-life friendship off-screen. Fortunately, for them, their roles were not just one-off. They did three movies in five years, which gave them enough time to build a friendship.
9 Ridley’s Thoughts About Reylo
Just like fans of the franchise, Ridley does not know whether she loves or hates Rey and Kylo’s romantic storyline. According to CheatSheet, Ridley revealed that she is not too sure about Reylo because everyone thinks that the relationship they have is toxic. Rey wants to help Kylo but at the same time, she does not want to help a murderer.
8 Driver’s Thoughts About Reylo
Driver feels that the Reylo storyline is complicated. What he enjoys about it is that it keeps changing over and over again. There are times the two seem like they have joined forces other times they are rivals. At times, they are allies, other times they are enemies, as EW reports. This suspense keeps fans on their toes.
7 They Have A Great Emotional Connection Onscreen
Ridley and Driver might have a 10-year age difference in real-life but this is not evident in the films. They appear as though they are age mates due to their palpable onscreen chemistry. Rey and Kylo have an emotional connection just as most co-stars do. For their case, it might have been hard to capture the chemistry between two characters playing opposite sides but they did it effortlessly as Inkeldo reports.
6 Their Characters Are Attracted To Each Other
Rey and Kylo have a complicated relationship. They play against each other in the film but they cannot help but feel some sort of attraction towards each other. When you watch their films, the two seem to have some romance going on. The way they glance at each other, fight and even how Kylo wants Rey to join the dark side, there is some attraction happening there as Heroichollywood reveals.
5 They Are Both Dedicated To Their Roles
When Driver gets into his First Order’s Supreme Leader role, he really gets into it. According to Looper, Driver has a lot of focus on set and has a good work ethic. As for Ridley, she is also focused, giving and open. The two actors never complain when the director makes changes, they just go along with them and move on. The director admires this about them.
4 They Give Each Other Shoutouts
Ridley and Driver have both done interviews and red carpets in regards to their Star Wars films. According to EW, even when they are not together, there is a good chance one will mention the other. This can be attributed to the fact that their roles play two sides to the same coin, even when they are not together, they still haunt each other some way.
3 Promote Their Films Together
Ridley and Driver are almost inseparable when it comes to promoting their films. One such interview is the Vmagazine interview they did in 2017. Since their first movie, they are always doing interviews and award shows together. Sometimes other cast members join them, but since their storylines intertwine, it is normally hard to find one without the other.
2 Fans Think Ridley Will Redeem Driver
For the longest time, fans have been speculating that Rey is destined to redeem Kylo from the dark side just like the way Luke Skywalker redeemed his father. However, this seems rather hard given the magnitude of Kylo’s evil deeds. However, according to EW, if this is the case, Rey’s powerful storyline will be reduced to saving an evil man. Guess you will just have to watch The Rise of Skywalker to find out what happened.
1 They Play Similar Characters
Ridley and Driver somehow play similar characters; the only difference is that Ridley plays a hero while Kylo plays a villain. According to Cinemablend, they were both loners struggling to find their place and purpose. Even though they are frenemies, they have both found something they lacked in each other.
Sources: cinemablend.com, ew.com, vmagazine.com, looper.com, disney.com