The death of Idara in the first episode of the Disney+ “Star Wars” series “The Acolyte” came as a shock to everyone but the woman who played her.
Carrie-Anne Moss told Business Insider that she knew when she signed on to play Idara that she’d be killed off right away. What “The Matrix” star didn’t anticipate was how fans would react to the scene.
Moss’ Jedi master character, Idara, battles the evil Mae Aniseya (Amandla Stenberg) in the opening sequence of the series’ first episode in a thrilling duel that’s part “The Matrix,” part “Star Wars.” Fans were in shock when the battle ended with Mae killing Idara, especially because Moss was a large part of the series’ ad campaign.
“I swear if you hype up a Carrie-Anne Moss Jedi only for her role to be THAT small, imma force choke someone,” one viewer wrote on X after the first episode.
“Why yall make Carrie-Anne Moss get out of bed if you’re just gonna waste her like that,” another wrote.
Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty
Speaking to Business Insider, Moss admitted she simply didn’t think about how the audience would receive the scene.
“The reaction to it from the fans, I kind of thought, ‘Wow, how did I not think of that?'” she said. Though her character does appear in flashbacks later in the series, Moss said she didn’t think about if people would be missing her presence on the show.
“I mean, I serve the writers and the directors,” she continued. “It didn’t cross my mind. But afterward, when people made a big deal about it. I was like, ‘How did I miss that?’ I didn’t think it would be a big deal at all.”
Though Disney canceled “The Acolyte” after one season, Moss isn’t slowing down. She currently stars in season 2 of the Netflix series “FUBAR” opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger.
For Moss, it’s a restart to her career after slowing down in the 2010s to raise her children. Now that they’re off to college, Moss said she’s having the most fun she’s ever had playing a villain opposite Schwarzenegger.
“I love working and love so many of the jobs that I’ve done, but that wouldn’t be how I would describe them,” Moss said. “Having a job for the first time where I can say, ‘That was so much fun,’ it makes me want to do more.”
