Dominic Monaghan explains how he got his role in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker after winning a football bet with J.J. Abrams during last year’s World Cup.
In September 2018, Monaghan appeared as a guest on the talk podcast Distraction Pieces with Scroobius Pip where he discussed (among other topics) his journey into The Rise of Skywalker. Abrams promised the possibility of a role to Monaghan, which led Monaghan to telling his agent to avoid other, higher-paying projects just to be available for Star Wars.
Later, Monaghan was watching England play Colombia in the World Cup, a historic game for the English when Monaghan received the email of a lifetime. “At the start of that game,” recalls Monaghan, “because J.J. is a motherfucker in the best way possible, he emailed me and he said, ‘I think I have a Star Wars part for you.’ And I wrote back and said, ‘Brilliant, I won’t bother you but let me know if there’s anything I can do or what I can say.’ He wrote back and said, ‘If England beat Colombia, you’re in.’ I was like, oh mate, you bastard.”
After 120 minutes, England won the penalty shoot-out, which alone had Monaghan jumping and screaming. But he also knew what J.J. Abrams promised him: A role in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. “You’re in.”
