Over the weekend, at long last, Star Wars: The Last Jedi held its world premiere in Los Angeles. Fans lined the red carpet to get a glimpse of the saga's stars, and reactions to the long-awaited sequel are apparently good (I've been avoiding all of it -- really trying to stay spoiler-free). But hands down, the highlight of the premiere was the mega-franchise's newest star, Kelly Marie Tran, having the best damn time.
Tran plays Rose Tico, a behind-the-scenes Resistance nobody who gets thrust into the action when she goes on a mission with Finn. Up until recently, Tran -- much like Rose -- was also kind of a nobody, a struggling actress with a comedy background trying to break into Hollywood and working odd jobs to make ends meet. Until the biggest movie franchise of all time plucked her from obscurity to play a role that will most certainly make her a household name. And from the looks of it, she is not taking any of this shit for granted.
In addition to looking drop dread gorgeous in red, Tran was seen spending a good portion of the festivities adorably freaking out, getting visibly emotional, hugging everyone in sight and overall looking like she was genuinely totally stoked just to be there. As Dani Fernandez observed, via Twitter, "Kelly Marie Tran is how all of us would be if we were cast in a Star Wars film."
Kelly Marie Tran is how all of us would be if we were cast in a star wars film pic.twitter.com/9s0LTT4TQT
— Dani Fernandez (@msdanifernandez) December 10, 2017
Kelly kind of lost it while thanking producer Ram Bergman for the opportunity.
Beautiful moment at #TheLastJedi premiere! Breakout star Kelly Marie Tran thanks producer Ram Bergman for this opportunity pic.twitter.com/vCw7ottrPN
— Hollywood Reporter (@THR) December 10, 2017
She also kind of lost it while hugging co-star Daisy Ridley, who basically went through the same thing two years ago when she was introduced to the world in The Force Awakens.
I feel strange posting a private moment, like this. But this level of emotion, met with this level of support, is @StarWars encapsulated. pic.twitter.com/lYd1bCcr1V
— janina gavankar (@Janina) December 10, 2017
Seeing Kelly's star rise kind of feels like we all got an invitation to this party.
Last night was basically Star Wars Prom. And Kelly Marie Tran was our nerdy best friend who got voted Prom Queen. #starwars #thelastjedi pic.twitter.com/Z5KBZ6b2Ei
— Angry Asian Man (@angryasianman) December 10, 2017
Of course, Kelly's actual entourage for the evening included the fellow members of her all-female, all Asian American improv team, Number One Son.
Oh, her look for the evening? That stunning red number was a custom gown by Vietnamese designer Thai Nguyen, and her makeup was done by celebrity makeup artist Mai Quynh. Homegirl keeps it in the community.
But check the shoes.
A star is born. And she's pretty damn great.