Party Ain ’ t Over Yet !
Felicity
Goes Rogue
How did Felicity Jones , 33 , land the biggest role of the year , as the leader of a band of rebels in the new Star Wars film Rogue One ? If her nickname Tiny Warrior is any indication , by fighting for it . By Karen Valby
Photographs by Patrick Demarchelier Fashion editor : Jillian Davison
rowing up , I always felt that the Star Wars films belonged to the boys , no matter how much I played with lightsabers or wore my hair like Princess Leia ’ s . When the galaxy finally expanded to accommodate a female lead — Daisy Ridley ’ s Rey — in 2015 ’ s The Force Awakens , I rejoiced . Now Rogue One : A Star Wars Story , which takes place 34 years prior to Rey ’ s rise , thrusts another bold woman front and center : Felicity Jones ’ Jyn Erso . Jones ’ character is rash , assertive , and unrestrained — messy , thrilling traits that too few actresses get to tap into in big-budget action movies . Jones well understands how Jyn changes the game : As a little girl in a town outside of Birmingham , England , she dreamed not of saving planets but of playing love-struck Ariel from The Little Mermaid . Today , at age 33 , the Oxfordeducated actress is officially getting her turn as a new kind of Disney princess : “ a very contemporary , kick-ass princess ,” she says .
Jones has built a résumé deep with roles of take-charge women like Jyn . Last fall she played a doctor one mental leap ahead of Tom Hanks ’ smarty-pants professor in Inferno ; next up she ’ s a mother desperate to shield her son from the ugliness of her cancer in A Monster Calls . ( Her raw , intelligent performance could earn her a second Oscar nod ; she received her first in 2015 for her portrayal of Jane Hawking in The Theory of Everything .) Says the selfproclaimed feminist : “ What I love in my work is showing a fullsided woman , women who are strong but flawed .”
Though Jones is blanketing the big screen , she goes unnoticed by almost everyone at the cramped London coffee shop where we meet , save the winking barista who asks me if the famous woman is “ good people .” She is . In person Jones is both impossibly lovely and pleasantly ordinary . She carries herself with a graceful oldschool reserve , protecting the privacy of her life offscreen , a decision based in her desire for audiences to immerse themselves in her films . “ When I go to the cinema , the less I know about the person , the more I can invest in them as characters ,” she says . But Jones isn ’ t aloof : She spoke to me with conviction about the Force , feminism , and fighting to bring brainy women to the screen .
GLAMOUR : You started acting as a kid . How did you persuade your parents to let you go on these auditions ?
FELICITY JONES : They never put up huge obstacles . But there was an emphasis on getting a good education . So I would work as hard as possible at school so I could keep acting alongside . It started off as a hobby .… Most of the time I was in the background . I never played [ the Virgin ] Mary . I was always kind of the third angel .
GLAMOUR : Where did you get your work ethic ? FJ : My mother [ was in advertising and ] worked incredibly ➻
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