Gwendoline Christie's Captain Phasma will return in Star Wars: Episode VIII

Having been featured heavily in the pre-release marketing, it was a little surprising that Gwendoline Christie's Captain Phasma ultimately had very little screen time in Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens. Thankfully we haven't seen the last of the character, as Christie confirmed Phasma's return on the red carpet of the Screen Actor's Guild Awards. Check out her interview with People below...

This might come as a surprise to some fans who thought it unlikely the uber Stromtrooper had survived the obliteration of Starkiller Base, but obviously that shiny armour protected her from harm. "I thought the costume was incredibly striking." Christie said in the interview. "I also just liked this notion of a female stormtrooper. I felt it encouraged diversity and it was doing something new and it was an interesting bit of casting for women, and I hope that in something that was such a mainstream success it would breed more of those kind of opportunities for other women."

We still don't know how much of that costume we'll get to see in Episode VIII, but here's hoping we'll have a lot more to say about Phasma by the time the credits roll.

Directed by Rian Johnson and starring Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver, Gwendoline Christie, and Mark Hamill, Star Wars: Episode VIII will be released in UK and US cinemas on December 15, 2017.

Images: Star Wars

Amon Warmann

Amon is a contributing editor and columnist for Empire magazine, but is also a Film and TV writer for GamesRadar+, Total Film, and others. He has also written for NME, Composer Mag, and more, along with being a film critic for TalkSport. He is also the co-host of the Fade to Black Podcast, and a video mashup creator. Can also do a pretty good Bane impersonation.