The whole world is online, and a social media presence is today seen as more of a necessity than a choice in the entertainment business. Daisy Ridley quit social media a few years ago as a result of repeated unpleasant encounters with a particularly vicious sub-section of Star Wars fans online. In a recent interview, the actress confirmed that she has no intention of returning to social media due to her concerns about anxiety and phone addiction.

"I have managed to separate my personal life well from my professional life, partly probably because I'm not on social media. The statistics that link them (social media sites) to anxiety are terrifying. I have friends completely addicted to their phone who have suffered with this problem... I don't want to go back, but sometimes I think about it. But the truth is that no, I won't be returning."

When it was first announced that Ridley would be replacing Mark Hammill as the new central hero of the Star Wars saga, a certain toxic section of the fandom had immediately started trolling Ridley, along with her fellow co-star John Boyega. The trolling took on even greater dimensions in later years, with many accusing Ridley's character Rey of being a "Mary Sue" type. Finally, the actress had had enough, and she announced she was done with social media.

Even without the online trolling, Ridley has had a difficult time getting used to the intense public scrutiny that comes with being a part of Star Wars. The actress explained that she has a tough time meeting fans who cannot distinguish between the real Daisy Ridley and Rey.

"[I feel] Really uncomfortable [being recognized]. I'm not used to it. For the most part people are being really nice, but I'm not a small talk kind of person. It's like, I'm not your hero, you like the character I play. But I'm getting better at it. I also have really good friends. They're incredibly defensive, in an amazing way... I was in a supermarket with two of my friends a while back -- I was really tired, it was in the morning -- and this person started to approach and they just went, 'No, not today.' I was like, 'Thanks guys'."

All in all, Ridley is probably glad to have put her time as Rey behind her to be rid of the heightened level of public scrutiny. But as difficult as that must have been, the actress remains grateful for her time spent playing Rey, as she spoke in a previous interview about how emotional the last day of filming The Rise of Skywalker had been, admitting that, "I felt like I was going to pop a vein because I was crying so much... Obviously not to say that it was like grieving, but it was grieving something. I'll always have it, and we're all bonded by this incredible thing." This story originated at smoda.elpais.com.