"Star Wars: The Force Awakens' director J.J. Abrams recently addressed the controversy surrounding his casting choice for John Boyega as a Stormtrooper in the upcoming film.
In an interview with Howard Stern that aired on his SiriusXM radio show, both the director and the jock seemingly sounded unconvinced about the casting issue becoming a big deal.
"Why couldn't there be a black Stormtrooper? I don't understand," Stern asked.
"Neither did I," Abrams responded. "All I know is that John Boyega is extraordinary in the movie."
Stern continued to ask why many people have been making complaints about the helmer's casting choice. Abrams was straightforward in his answer.
"I think the people who are complaining about that probably have bigger problems than there's a black Stormtrooper," he replied.
The controversy began last year when the first ever teaser trailer for "Star Wars: The Force Awakens' gave fans a glimpse of Boyega, becoming the first actor to appear onscreen.
The 23-year-old actor already addressed the issue on Instagram by humbly writing, "Get used to it. :)" and shared his sentiments to V Magazine earlier this year.
"It was unnecessary," Boyega said, referring to the negative remarks. ""¦ I'm not saying get used to the future, but what is already happening. People of color and women are increasingly being shown on-screen. For things to be whitewashed just doesn't make sense."
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During the process of becoming a Jedi knight, Boyega had undergone "seven months of auditions" before landing the role, comparing the auditions to "The X Factor' and calling it an "intense process."
As pointed out by the British actor, his character Finn, who is already known as a Stormtrooper-turned-Jedi, was the "best character" he had read about in the script.
"Finn is dope. His story is so epic," he said. "It's a story that's never been seen before, but it also mirrors the stories of Luke Skywalker and Han Solo. And he's quirky and charismatic and funny."
Star Wars: The Force Awakens makes its way to theaters on Dec. 18 while "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story' will be released a year later on Dec. 16, 2016. As for "Star Wars: Episode VIII,' it will be released on May 26, 2017.
