Star Wars: The Last Jedi’s Kelly Marie Tran Opens Up About Her Overnight Fame

 

Kelly Marie Tran is still adjusting her life as Star Wars‘ newest heroine.

The actress will portray a Resistance maintenance worker named Rose in Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

“The past two years have been the craziest years of my entire life,” she tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue.

But while anticipation for the film is at an all-time high with fans speculating just how Tran’s character will fit into the franchise, the actress says she still hasn’t quite wrapped her head around her newfound fame.

“I just still can’t believe it’s all happening,” she says. “I keep having to remind myself that I’m in a movie. I’ll just go to LA Fitness and go to Ralph’s and go to the grocery store — and nobody knows who I am. Then I come to these events and I’m living this weird Hannah Montana life.”

Star Wars marks the first major movie role for the Vietnamese actress. Tran says the rarity of getting to join such a famous franchise so early on in her career is not lost on her.

“I would tell myself just to be present and soak in every single moment,” she says of advice she would have given herself before landing the role. “It’s such a special experience that you just want to really experience every second of it.”

“So many people want this, and I get to do this!”

Star Wars: The Last Jedi hits theaters Dec. 15.