Star Wars: The Force Awakens has been dominating the box office and cultural conversation lately. The latest installment of the science fiction franchise and the first one after a ten year hiatus has been roundly praised by critics and audiences alike.
Everyone has been absolutely raving about the film, particularly the female lead Rey played by British actress Daisy Ridley.
However, fans have been angered at the character’s absence from a lot of official merchandise. For example, Rey pilots the Millenium Falcon in the film but the toy version just features Chewbacca, Finn and BB-8.
Rey is the new pilot of the millennium falcon, but the soccer ball gets more love. Come on #StarWars #WheresRey pic.twitter.com/YK34eA3xYf
— Alex M Langenfeld (@CorporateMalice) December 29, 2015
Hasbro also released an official Star Wars Monopoly set and there is no option to play as Rey in the board game, which is annoying many fans of the series, male and female.
Star Wars Monopoly that’s missing lead character has fans asking #WheresReyhttps://t.co/WSS1dkPORm
— The Guardian (@guardian) January 5, 2016
Fans have taken to Twitter using the hashtag #Where’sRey to highlight this massive oversight made by the merchandise manufacturers.
This 8-year-old girl is more badass than I can ever hope to be. #WheresRey pic.twitter.com/cCBqOu1KXG
— Cassidee Moser (@CassideeMoser) January 4, 2016
It’s not just that Rey is not marketed to boys, #StarWars is not being marketed to girls. #WheresRey pic.twitter.com/9CgQY0iOI2
— Liz Rugg (@LizRugg) January 3, 2016
So if there are #Rey toys but they are out of stock because of high demand maybe they should have made more? Yup. #WheresRey
— PatriciaKarvelas (@PatsKarvelas) December 29, 2015
Representation Matters. #Rey #WheresRey #StarWarsTheForceAwakens pic.twitter.com/sZEbWARz61
— Matthew A. Cherry (@MatthewACherry) December 29, 2015
I would LOVE to hear the reason why Rey wasn’t included. I mean, Seriously? Give me a logical reason why she isn’t in the game! #WheresRey
— Charlotte Watts (@HideAndSecret) January 5, 2016
Disney have addressed this problem in an interview with The Daily Beast: “In many stores and e-commerce destinations, products featuring Rey are selling as quickly as retailers can restock shelves. Fans will also be seeing a lot more of Rey with a new wave of product coming in January.”
However, many people argue the company should have anticipated the demand for the toys, and believe that the assumption that girls would not be interested in purchasing them has led to the current problem.
