from the original audition info i thought for sure rey and finn would be love interests, since that’s usually what ‘co-leads close in age in an action-adventure movie’ mean
Hey Nonnie,
Definitely possible. I’m pretty sure that Rey and Finn were written to have a more antagonistic meeting initially that just didn’t work, that it was later reworked into what it is now. It definitely could have worked as a romantic story, but it never really played like that for me (no shade, people are free and welcome to ship what they want).
After Harrison got hurt, I think the script got reworked a lot, so who knows what the original intention was (though, judging from early concept art, I definitely think there was always meant to be a strong connection between the hero and the villain, irrespective of whether it was meant to be romantic or not). As much as some people would wish it otherwise, SW heroes and villains always have a strong connection to one another, which is part of the reason I enjoy the series so much (too much).
Cheers, Nonnie.