Disney Threatens to Replace John Boyega Over Health Concerns

September 24, 2015 "Faking" Jacen Solo

From out of breath to potentially out of a job! John Boyega faces mounting pressure to shape up or ship out after weight gains hamper production on Star Wars: The Force Awakens. After the jump, find out why size matters a whole lot despite what Jedi Master Yoda says.

As it turns out the biggest secret surrounding Star Wars: The Force Awakens is not who lives or dies, but why John Boyega is twice the size.

According to our source, who goes by the name of “Cousin,” John Boyega has gained a considerable amount of weight throughout the production. When shooting began on the film, Boyega was a thin Finn weighing in at about 175 lbs. By the time the production wrapped, however, he was tipping the scales at 218 lbs. That’s nearly 50 lb. more Finn!

“Rey! Rey! Rey!”

People close to the production have speculated Boyega may be over eating to cope with stress. After all, this is his first big Hollywood film and the first new Star Wars in over a decade. While anxiety may be a factor, “Cousin” points to Boyega’s year-long bromance with actor Greg Grunberg as the real culprit behind the weight gain.

Professional eater/amateur actor Greg Grunberg hard at work

Craft services has detailed hours-long eating contests between the fast friends. Grunberg has become somewhat of a foodie mentor to Boyega, showing him the ins and outs of American cuisine. The pair are quite fond of the Grunburger – a monstrous meat concoction held together by a pair of cronuts. But all this supersize eating has taken a hefty toll on Boyega. The star of the upcoming Star Wars has quite literally morphed into a younger, blacker version of Grunberg.

The Grunburger

The transformation hasn’t been lost on the cast and crew of the film. Boyega’s costars have stopped calling him by the nickname “Peanut” and started referring to him as “DoughBoy-ega” instead.

Meanwhile, an anonymous crewmember reports overhearing director JJ Abrams say, “Listen John we can make you appear heavier with a fat suit. Or taller with lifts like the Tom’s I’m wearing. But there’s simply no practical effect that will make you look thinner.”

On Abrams’ request, Spanx created several custom Force Fit bodyslimmers for Boyega. Unfortunately none were up for the herculean task of “holding all that Finn within.”

John “DoughBoy-ega”

The ballooning Boyega continues to make post-production a considerable challenge. Cutting a trailer has been especially time-consuming for Abrams, since he’s had to find creative ways to edit around the actor’s weight gain. It’s no coincidence the character of Finn is always out of breath. The extra pounds have restricted Boyega’s speech to single syllable phrases with large pauses before Each. And. Every. One.

“A little short of breath for a stormtrooper?

The bigger the actor gets, the larger the shockwaves being felt – and not just by the cast and crew. Figures based on Finn have been a dud, with Hasbro complaining that “no one wants to buy Fat Tracy Morgan.”

Our Faking spies tell us the entire third act of the film had to be rewritten because of Boyega’s inability to say anything while moving a lightsaber. His shortness of breath limits him to either speak a few syllables slowly while standing still OR move his body in small movements BUT not both simultaneously. So when it came time for Finn’s climactic lightsaber duel with the villainous Kylo Ren, there was no way to adhere to the script which had Finn besting the upstart dark sider. Instead, Abrams and Larry Kasdan minimized Boyega’s role in the duel – he literally ignites a lightsaber, sweats profusely, then has his arm cut off before lazily tossing the weapon to Rey like a half-eaten chicken bone.

Boyega nearly collapsed from exhaustion after this take

Not only did Abrams minimize Finn’s role, he also had to stretch out nearly every frame Boyega is in to make him appear thinner. Most upsetting of all to Abrams though is the need to use CG, breaking his Practical Effects rule of thumb. In the film, you’ll notice that Finn is wearing an entirely black outfit throughout Acts 2 and 3. The ensemble is entirely digital, overlaid atop Boyega’s original outfit. The black is not meant to communicate a mastery of the force but rather to hide a mastery of eating course after course.

Here’s another fun fact: Abrams warned Boyega to not go over 217 lbs., and to support the initiative, everyone on set agreed to “Not A Grape After 8” rules. The crafty director ingeniously gave Finn the stormtrooper call sign FN2187 as a not-so-subtle reminder.

As of this writing, Boyega has cost the production nearly $3 million for additional post-production and close to $7 million for massive craft service food frenzies. Disney bigwigs are understandably concerned. Kathleen Kennedy and Simon Kinberg are considering replacing Boyega with Michael B. Jordan, the physically fit star of Joshua Trank’s Fantastic Four and the upcoming Creed.

Jordan is already training for the role of Finn in Episode VIII

This wouldn’t be the first time a Star Wars film has had to deal with major physical changes to one of its lead actors. After filming A New Hope, Mark Hamill was in a devastating car accident, which scarred his face beyond recognition. George Lucas cleverly wrote a scene into The Empire Strikes Back to explain Luke Skywalker’s new look. That wampa slash to the face sure came in handy!

In any case, FSW is hoping John Boyega can drop a few pounds, and stick around for Episodes VIII and IX. He’s a wonderful ambassador for the Star Wars brand, and his infectious enthusiasm has already made him a fan favorite. You can do it, John!