Well known from her breakthrough role in the Star Wars franchise – starring as Rose Tico in The Last Jedi (2017) and The Rise of Skywalker (2019) – Kelly Marie Tran makes history again voicing the lead princess role in Disney’s first animation based on Southeast Asian cultures, Raya and the Last Dragon . Humble beginnings With a few minor roles here and there, Tran started her acting career appearing in short films, TV and appearing in a few sketches on internet comedy platform CollegeHumour. The children of Vietnamese refugees who fled the war, Tran credits her Hollywood success with the parents’ for giving her a chance in life. Despite this, the San Diego native and UCLA graduate worked multiple jobs while auditioning to make ends meet, before her big break in 2017. Vietnam’s Ambanis? The family that brought Miss Universe to the country Groundbreaking cover Not only did she make an unforgettable appearance as the strong and powerful Rose Tico, Tran broke bounds again by becoming the first Asian woman to feature on the cover of Vanity Fair in September 2017, in celebration of Star Wars ’ 40th anniversary. View this post on Instagram Leading up to the 40th anniversary of the @StarWars franchise, Vanity Fair introduces the next chapter in its saga with four covers devoted to #TheLastJedi (link in bio). Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac), is on the third cover, joined by friends Finn (John Boyega) and the droid BB-8 (as himself). Also featured: Rose Tico (Kelly Marie Tran), the new character with the most screen time in Episode VIII. Photograph by Annie Leibovitz. A post shared by Vanity Fair (@vanityfair) on May 23, 2017 at 10:58am PDT Animation takeover Tran has scored many firsts in Hollywood as a women of colour. Her first big break did not go unnoticed, as the first Asian-American woman cast for a major role in the Star Wars franchise. Tran continues to add to her list of achievements with the much-anticipated upcoming Disney animation Raya and the Last Dragon , a story inspired by a blend of Southeast Asian cultures, set to release in March 2021. Tran is also featuring as the voice of Val Little in the new Monsters at Work series releasing in 2021. Marvel to High School Musical: 5 Disney+ shows telling LGBT stories ‘Raya and the Last Dragon’ filmmakers discuss casting Kelly Marie Tran and making a film inspired by Southeast Asia. https://t.co/zDDDfNIFzI — Entertainment Weekly (@EW) August 27, 2020 Social media, racial abuse and discrimination Since debuting in the Star Wars franchises, Tran has been subject to racial harassment online, an experience which sadly mirrored her early childhood experiences of bullying. Tran has since written an article for The New York Times , reflecting on the incident. I want to live in a world where children of colour don’t spend their entire adolescence wishing to be white. I want to live in a world where women are not subjected to scrutiny for their appearance, or their actions, or their general existence Kelly Marie Tran Nguyen Quoc Cuong: the former playboy married to sexy singer Dam Thu Trang Tran’s social media harassment led to her deleting all of her public Instagram posts. Want more stories like this? Sign up here . Follow STYLE on Facebook , Instagram , YouTube and Twitter .
