John Boyega is getting ripped for Star Wars: Episode VIII

After valianty getting his butt kicked by Kylo Ren in The Force Awakens, John Boyega is doing everything he can to be in better shape for the next Star Wars film.

Earlier this week, the actor, who plays Finn in the new trilogy, posted a photo of himself on Instagram working out with just the simple caption, "VIII," teasing the upcoming film.

For what he lacks in the Force, Boyega seems keen on making up with in muscle. Last month, Boyega briefly touched upon the next installment in the core Star Wars saga, describing it as "great" and "much darker" than The Force Awakens. The actor also teased his part in the next film will be "much more physical," which explains his bulking up at the gym.

While Finn was easily one of my favorite new characters in the film (a close second to Oscar Isaac's Poe Dameron), there were some who thought the character was a bit too weak compared to some of the other newcomers (like Rey, aka Mary Sue).

There were some who criticized Disney and director J.J. Abrams for supposedly relegating Finn — Star Wars' first prominant black character (I'm not counting Lando) — to nothing more than a sidekick of the strong, white female protagonist Rey. Although Finn's defeat to Kylo Ren is justfiable, given the whole power of the Force thing, others complained about the character's comedic, sidekick nature, and the fact that he was in "sanitation" while working at Starkiller Base, which some accused Disney of being racist about.

Despite technically never solving a problem on his own, I think Finn's heroics shined in other ways that simply went unappreciated by many. If anything, his weaknesses displayed in The Force Awakens give his character room to grow in Episodes VIII and IX. And if this photo is anything to judge by, Finn is going to make quite a comeback in the next installment.

I'm still not sure he'll be able to take on Kylo Ren — as I'm sure that rematch will be with Rey — but hopefully we get to see Finn shine in some more prominant ways in Episode VIII.

After a delay, Star Wars: Episode VIII is now on track for a December 15, 2017 release. In the meantime, fans will have Rogue One: A Star Wars Story — the first of Disney's planned Anthology spin-off series — to look forward to in December 2016.