The production of Star Wars: The Force Awakens was so ridiculously secretive that one of its lead actors didn't even know that's the project her audition was for.
In an appearance on The Ellen Degeneres Show, Lupita Nyong'o said that when she auditioned for the movie, she was just told that it was a J.J. Abrams project and that he was working on a big film. Disney then had Nyong'o read a substitute script rather than the actual Force Awakens screenplay.
As if the whole thing wasn't hectic enough, this audition also took place the very same week that she won the Academy Award for her performance in 12 Years A Slave. She found out that she got the part - and that the part was in Star Wars - two months later while she was on vacation. Nyong'o also described the process of giving a motion capture performance, which involved two hours of preparation before every scene.
In Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Nyong'o plays Maz Kanata, a female pirate who is over 1,000 years old and who owns a castle that hosts travelers and smuggles.
The Force Awakens opens on Friday, with early screenings Thursday night.