Star Wars: Why Jedi Master Indara From The Acolyte Looks So Familiar
Science fiction fans who started watching "The Acolyte" probably recognized Jedi Master Indara right away. The character, who is attacked by the villainous Mae (Amandla Stenberg) during Episode 1's first scene, is played by genre legend Carrie-Anne Moss. Moss got her start on television in her native Canada before transitioning to smaller films and eventually breaking out as a superstar in the 1999 action classic "The Matrix." Since then, she's appeared in dozens of movies, TV shows, and even video games, often skewing toward the sci-fi realm that made her famous.
On "The Acolyte," Moss plays a character worthy of her veteran status. It's clear from Indara's opening fight that the actor was cast in large part because of her previous sci-fi martial arts experience, and the duel delivers. "Carrie-Anne Moss felt like an essential part of establishing, first of all the tone of the show, and also to pull you in to the universe that we were establishing," showrunner Leslye Headland said in an interview with The Hindu. "Without her power and skill, I'm not sure we would have been able to achieve the magnetic energy of starting the show, of getting the ball rolling."
Because she's had such a prolific career, there are plenty of reasons why Moss may look familiar to "Acolyte" viewers. Here's where you've seen Jedi Master Indara before.
Carrie-Anne Moss played Trinity in The Matrix
Again, you likely knew this one already. Carrie-Anne Moss' performance as Trinity in the Matrix series is one of the most iconic in sci-fi history. The split-kicks, the motorcycle tricks, the leather jackets, the cyber-shades — they all come together to form a character so indelible that she's left a permanent mark on the genre.
"The Matrix" launched Moss to stardom in 1999, and her subsequent appearances in "The Matrix Reloaded" and "The Matrix Revolutions" solidified her as an action icon in the early 2000s. Nearly two decades after the original trilogy ended, Moss reprised her most famous role alongside co-star Keanu Reeves in 2021's "The Matrix Resurrections." The character was clearly a big reason for Moss' "Acolyte" casting, with Leslye Headland telling Empire that Jedi Master Indara was "very much inspired by Trinity." Moss has also shared how excited she was to play an action-forward character again. "A part of me forgot how much I love action," the star told Empire. "I love it. It's hard. But I was just really thrilled that I could do it, and I wanted to do it well."
In addition to playing Trinity in live action, Moss has voiced the character in "The Animatrix" and various video games. That vocal work may have indirectly led to the rest of her video game career, which includes characters like Tilda in "Horizon Forbidden West" and the hardboiled gangster Aria T'Loak in the Mass Effect franchise.
She played Natalie in Christopher Nolan's Memento
In between the first "Matrix" and the two sequels that released in 2003, Carrie-Anne Moss appeared in a number of films, including "Red Planet," "The Crew," and Christopher Nolan's 2000 thriller, "Memento." Starring alongside Guy Pearce and Joe Pantoliano, Moss plays Natalie, a bartender who gets pulled into a complex revenge scheme.
After the end of the Matrix trilogy, Moss became a stalwart in Hollywood. Her more notable film credits include the 2006 rom-com "Snow Cake" (starring alongside Alan Rickman and Sigourney Weaver), D. J. Caruso's "Disturbia," the 2012 video game adaptation "Silent Hill: Revelation," and the 2014 Paul W. S. Anderson disaster movie "Pompeii." She's also appeared in 2015's "Frankenstein" and 2016's "Brain on Fire," starring Chloë Grace Moretz.
Throughout the '90s, Moss remained prolific on television, with major roles on shows like "Dark Justice," "Matrix" (no relation), and "Models Inc." However, these TV appearances dwindled once her Hollywood star took off. Moss returned to the small screen in the early 2010s, though, with credits on series like "Chuck," "Vegas," and "Crossing Lines."
She made her Marvel debut in Jessica Jones
Given her predilection for genre action, it was only a matter of time before Carrie-Anne Moss joined the world of comic book adaptations. Her Marvel debut came in 2015 when she began playing lawyer Jeri Hogarth on the Netflix series "Jessica Jones." This role expanded to become one of the largest supporting characters in Marvel's short-lived Defenders sub-franchise, with Moss playing Hoggarth on episodes of "Daredevil" and "Iron Fist."
Since her Marvel role ended, Moss has remained active on TV once again. In 2019, she began playing FBI Special Agent Maggie Griffin on the Norwegian crime thriller "Wisting." That same year, she starred on the thriller series "Tell Me a Story.'
Moss' new Star Wars role is certainly her most high-profile appearance in some time, but she's never let up in her career. If you found yourself enraptured by Master Indara's fighting style, it might be the perfect time to revisit "The Matrix" and see Trinity in all her leather-clad glory once again.
To read more about Moss' classic sci-fi career, check out the best Neo and Trinity moments in The Matrix.