John Boyega Opens Up About His Participation In Black Lives Matter Protests

“Star Wars” actor John Boyega has opened up about his participation in the Black Lives Matter protests in the United Kingdom and thanked some of his friends, including JJ Abrams and Jordan Peele, for backing him up throughout the movement.

During his appearance in this week’s episode of the Variety and iHeart podcast “The Big Ticket,” the 28-year-old actor spoke about how thankful he was to have the support of such wonderful people when he needed it the most.

Talking about the BLM protests, Boyega said that he received continuous support from his close pals in the entertainment industry who kept reminding him that he did not make a mistake by joining the protestors.

“All the people around me definitely worried about safety, exposure in that way, are you going to offend anybody. That’s the natural kind of reaction,” he explained.

“But I was definitely supported by those who have always supported me, like Jordan Peele and J.J. Abrams. What’s great about those guys is they’ve always been supporting me. Myself and Jordan had a sit down a year ago. J.J. and I speak on a regular basis,” he added.

The actor also admitted that he expected backlash after his involvement in the protests.

“But you don’t go through the process thinking everything is going to be fine. You don’t do that. You worry and it’s natural to the situation, especially when you see what has happened to others with much less of a voice, unfortunately,” Boyega said.

Abrams and Peele were some of the biggest names who came out in support of the actor after he said in June that he might not be able to land gigs in the future because he supports the movement.

The “Star Wars: Force Awakens” director immediately responded that he would definitely work with the “Pacific Rim: Uprising” star in a heartbeat.

Meanwhile, on the professional front, Boyega will be next seen in the TV series “Small Axe.” Boyega plays the role of a young man named Leroy Logan, who at a young age saw his father getting assaulted by two policemen. The incident encouraged him to join the Metropolitan Police and attempt to change racist attitudes within the system.

Directed by Steve McQueen, “Small Axe” is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.