Daniel Ings hails 'punk' Star Wars: Starfighter

Daniel Ings claims Star Wars: Starfighter has a "punk feel to it".

The 40-year-old actor appears in Shawn Levy's upcoming Star Wars film in an undisclosed role and feels the flick is faithful to the legendary space opera franchise while maintaining a unique tone.

Daniel told Screen Rant: "I felt great. I felt tremendous about it. I f****** loved it. I got nothing to add there. I got nothing, no issues for me.

"Listen, it was Star Wars through and through. There were days when I was walking around, and there's droids rolling around and animatronic heads and just hundreds of people in these amazing costumes, but with a sort of punk feel to it. I loved it, so I felt excellent about it."

The A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms star waxed lyrical about the "playful" atmosphere on set and revealed that he has the majority of his scenes with lead actor Ryan Gosling.

Ings said: "I wonder if it maybe still hasn't sunk in yet. It was such a fun experience. I met Shawn Levy, the director, to read for the part, and he's inherently playful and clearly sets up an environment where people can bounce off each other and find things in the moment.

"So in a way, any kind of nervousness about stepping into something so established and beloved and as huge as Star Wars dissipated because I got there and I was like, 'Oh, this is fun and playful.'

"And Ryan Gosling, who I had most of my stuff with, again, was so playful with it and hunting for all the interesting moments. I was able to go in and be like, 'Yeah, this is huge, but it still feels as creative as being on Lovesick or The Gentlemen or something like that.' I loved it."

Gosling recently explained that he signed up for Star Wars: Starfighter despite usually avoiding big franchises because he was blown away by Levy's "enthusiasm and vision".

The Barbie star told io9: "It was Shawn’s enthusiasm and his vision and the script.

"And I just avoided these things because they never felt right. And I’m glad I did because I feel like, [similar to] a book like this, [it was] worth waiting for. And it is like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

Levy previously revealed how he learned from Stranger Things – on which he was involved as both a director and executive producer – to "stay rooted in character" for Star Wars: Starfighter, which is due for release in May 2027.

The 57-year-old filmmaker told The Hollywood Reporter: "If I’ve learned anything on Stranger Things, it’s that you can get intimidated by the scale of franchise expectation. But you will lose your way if that’s your focus.

"I’ve learned the need to stay rooted in character, and themes and relationships on screen.

"Yes, there’s spectacle and scale, just like Stranger Things. And of course, Star Wars and Starfighter has spectacle and scale and adventure at a level I’ve never done in my whole career. But like Stranger Things, it’s also very much anchored in a human-scale, character-sized story.

"I think that if I can balance the epic and the intimate the way [show creators Matt and Ross Duffer] have with Stranger Things, I’ll make a movie and an original and new Star Wars adventure that can be really satisfying to fans and audiences."