Star Wars: Rose actress Kelly Marie Tran quits Instagram after MONTHS of harassment

It’s not been confirmed why the actress, who plays Rose in the new movies, has made the surprising move; but it’s been widely linked to her being bullied online by a vicious corner of the Star Wars fandom for months.

Rose is a mechanic who befriends Finn (John Boyega) in Episode 8, and ultimately saves his life.

Despite critical acclaim, the film – and her character – did not go down well with all fans of the franchise; but there’s a clear difference between movie criticism and bigoted harassment, and Tran has repeatedly fallen victim to the latter.

She has now completely cleared-out her Instagram page, with popular Twitter account Star Wars Facts claiming it is a direct result of the abuse.

She’s not the first Star Wars personality to do this: Daisy Ridley did the same thing in August 2016, a few months after Episode 7: The Force Awakens hit cinemas.

Ridley had received backlash for speaking out against gun violence, later explaining: “Hey y’all! Just wanted to explain the hiatus…

“I just want to be on my phone less! Trying to be more present and all that and got a busy few months ahead so wanted less distractions… It’s all good.

“I always appreciate the support and love the Instagram community!”

Tran and Ridley will both be back in Star Wars: Episode 9, which begins filming this summer.

The movie, directed by JJ Abrams, will round out the current trilogy, which is expected to end the Skywalker Saga.

After that, Last Jedi director Rian Johnson will helm his own standalone trilogy of movies, and more spin-offs are also set to enter production in the near future.

Disney’s Star Wars era is getting its first taste of (relative) commercial failure right now, with Solo: A Star Wars Story flopping at the box office.

The film, starring Alden Ehrenreich as Han, received decent reviews but is thought to have struggled due to strong ongoing competition from Deadpool 2 and Avengers: Infinity War, its well-publicised production issues, and the small five-month window between Star Wars releases.

Despite making hundreds of millions worldwide, it is likely to fail to cover its costs and turn a profit.