Amilyn Holdo Amilyn Holdo was a human female from the planet Gatalenta . In her youth , Holdo served in the Apprentice Legislature of the Imperial Senate , where she became acquainted with Prince ss Leia Organa of Alderaan . During her time in the Apprentice Legislature , Holdo became friends with Organa , who confided with her about involvement with the rebellion against the Galactic Empire . By the year 34 ABY , Holdo became a Vice Admiral in Organa ' s Resistance during its war with the First Order , and was given command of the cruiser " Ninka " . Taking overall command of the Resistance after the deaths of most of the commander s and Organa ' s incapacitation , Holdo devised a plan to save the remaining personnel by evacuating them on transport s while she stayed behind on the command ship to draw attention away from them . When the transports came under fire , Holdo pilot ed the heavy cruiser " Raddus " into position and jumped to lightspeed through Supreme Leader Snoke ' s flagship , the " Mega " - class Star Destroyer " Supremacy " . Her sacrifice allowed the remaining transports to reach the planet Crait , where they subsequently escaped to fight another day . Biography . Early life . A human female , Amilyn Holdo was born on the planet Gatalenta during the early Imperial Era . In the year 3 BBY , Holdo joined the Apprentice Legislature , an Imperial organization on Coruscant for youth in politics . While in the Apprentice Legislature , Holdo met Prince ss Leia Organa of Alderaan , daughter of Senator Bail Organa . Holdo and Princess Organa spent much time together during senatorial sessions and routine pathfinding training on various worlds such as Alderaan , Eriadu , and Felucia . While pathfinding on the planet Pamarthe , Holdo discovered Organa ' s involvement with the rebellion against the Galactic Empire . Soon after , Holdo helped Organa find passage to the Paucris system in order to warn the fleet of an impending Imperial attack . Organa ' s Resistance . In 2 BBY , the rebellion became the Alliance to Restore the Republic , and in the subsequent Galactic Civil War , the Empire was toppled and replaced with a New Republic . However , an Imperial remnant reorganized into the First Order , so in 28 ABY , Organa created the Resistance to oppose them . By 34 ABY , during the conflict between the two groups , Holdo joined the Resistance military and served as a Vice Admiral and commanding officer of the cruiser " Ninka " . After the attack on Starkiller Base , she was posted on the Resistance ship " Ninka " . On D ' Qar just before the First Order ' s arrival , she briefed the Resistance pilots from Cobalt and Crimson Squadron about the events of the annihilation of the Hosnian system as well as the subsequent destruction of Starkiller Base . She offered ammunition from her ship to help arm their squadrons . Having heard of Rose Tico ' s previous accomplishments with Cobalt Squadron , Holdo asked her to take a position on the Ninka as part of the maintenance team . Commanding the fleet . During an attack on the " Raddus " , the ship ' s commander Leia Organa was ejected from the bridge and left unconscious , the attack also killing the entire High Command stationed on the bridge . Following the chain of command , Commander Larma D ' Acy delegated overall command of the Resistance to Holdo , who had transferred from her ship to the " Raddus " to take full command . After thanking D ' Acy , Holdo addressed the situation by explaining that the 400 personnel on three ships comprised the very last of the Resistance , but they would survive . Holdo had the remaining ships continue full ahead to keep out of the First Order ' s range , but their fuel reserves dwindled and they lost their medical frigate " Anodyne " when it ran dry . Holdo received a communication from the " Anodnye " ' s captain informing her that the rest of its crew had escaped and were heading her way , but the transmission was lost as the First Order destroyed the defenseless frigate . Shortly after , Holdo ' s own ship the " Ninka " was destroyed as well . Poe Dameron and Holdo were not on good terms , immediately butting heads over the issue of Poe ' s demotion and apparent lack of any decisive action . Deeming Poe an impulsive and reckless " fly - boy " , Holdo recognized that as a liability rather than an asset for the current situation and instead ordered him to stick to his post and follow her orders . Unfortunately , Holdo ' s lack of transparency with Poe had repercussions . When Holdo ordered the crew of the " Raddus " to evacuate to the planet Crait via rescue transports , Dameron and some crew members held the Admiral and some officers loyal to her at gunpoint and took control of the ship . Holdo escaped the mutiny , however , by kicking a steam pipe and stunning her antagonists while the newly - wakened Leia stunned Poe , and sent him to Crait with the rest of the crew . Holdo refused to board a transport herself , however , and told Leia that someone had to stay on the " Raddus " to keep it going and said she would be honoured to do it . Though Leia was extremely reluctant to take any more losses that day , especially another good friend , Holdo consoled her and bid her friend goodbye with the phrase " May the Force be with you . " Sacrifice . Holdo willed the transports on their way from the ship ' s secondary command bridge , but was horrified when the First Order detected and fired on the fleeing transports , destroying many of them . After personally witnessing the demise of a transport whilst conferring with its frantic pilot , Holdo resolved to prevent any more deaths and fired up the hyperdrive on the " Raddus " . Both the Resistance and First Order thought she was fleeing the battlezone , but General Hux ignored the ship as he thought it was simply a distraction , only realizing what Holdo was really going to do when the " Raddus " turned to face the " Supremacy " . Frantic , Hux ordered all batteries to fire on the cruiser but it was too late . Activating the hyperdrive , Holdo jumped through Supreme Leader Snoke ' s ship " Supremacy " at lightspeed , slicing the mammoth Dreadnought in two along with at least five " Resurgent " - class battlecruisers . The impact also threw the ship into complete chaos , disrupting the execution of a captured Finn and Rose . Though Holdo perished in the collision , her sacrifice allowed the escape of the remaining Resistance personnel . Personality and traits . Holdo had blue eye s and light - colored skin , and she was tall . In her youth , Holdo rebelled against the peaceful culture of her homeworld and expressed herself by dyeing her hair vibrant colors , wearing vibrantly - colored clothing , and going on daring escapades . In spite of that , Holdo showed great interest in esoteric practices of her planet , like meditation and astrology , and she was knowledgeable of the galaxy . Organa found Holdo to be insightful and charming , but also irritating at times . Holdo had a quirky personality , often getting distracted , speaking in riddles and metaphors with a monotone / singsong voice , and being eccentric . She was by no means stupid , however , and her oddball persona hid a keen intellect . She was not afraid of death , and dreamed of dangerous adventures “ to get more comfortable with the nearness and inevitability " of it . Holdo was a determined and patriotic person , able to react to changing circumstances and ready to sacrifice herself for the cause . As a commander she had a cool head for the greater strategy , and expected her orders to be executed precisely . Holdo was known to carry a Defender - 5 sporting blaster , which was favored by many nobles on her homeworld . According to Dameron , Holdo was recognized within the Resistance as a great strategic mind due to her actions the Battle of Chyron Belt and was admired even by Admiral Ackbar . Behind the scenes . Amilyn Holdo is a character developed for the 2017 film , in which she is portrayed by actress Laura Dern . The casting announcement was revealed on February 15 , 2016 , and Holdo ' s name was first revealed on May 24 , 2017 in a " " article . During the marketing campaign , Holdo appeared as a supporting character in the young adult novel " Leia , Princess of Alderaan " by Claudia Gray , and was briefly shown in the picture book " A Leader Named Leia " . Holdo ' s appearance in " Leia , Princess of Alderaan " was received positively , with some readers comparing her to the character Luna Lovegood from .