Carrie Fisher's passing caught everyone by surprise. In fact she was well into her book tour and had been on it for weeks. The worst part about writing this post is that we now need to look at how Fisher's death could impact her future work. Specifically in the galaxy far, far away.
According to Variety, Fisher's work on next December's STAR WARS EPISODE VIII was complete and she is rumored to be in line to have a much larger role as General Leia than she had in STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS. Variety writes:
"The eighth film in the series, in which Fisher appears as Leia Organa, wrapped shooting in July and is now in post-production. Sources tell Variety that Fisher’s work on the sequel was finished. That means that Disney and LucasFilm, the producers of the Star Wars series, will not have to address Fisher’s death until the ninth film begins shooting in 2018. Leia was originally slated to appear in that production."
Last time we saw Leia she wanted Han Solo to bring their son Ben Solo, a.k.a. Kylo Ren, back to her. Han did what he could until he was cut down by Kylo Ren. In his last moments, before plummeting to the depths of the Starkiller Base, Han caressed his son's face which will probably haunt and give Kylo Ren nightmares throughout the next two films. Once Rey and her fellow Resistance heroes returned from destroying Starkiller Base, Leia embraced Rey with a big hug. But Leia is still in pain due to the loss of Han at the hands of their own son.
This all implies Leia would have a much bigger role in Episode VIII as she leads the Resistance against the First Order and chases after her son to persuade him back from the Dark Side of the Force. And it sounds like she will. And there are rumors that Fisher was possibly set for a larger role in STAR WARS EPISODE IX, too.
If Leia does in fact have a large role in Episode IX, writer Rian Johnson will have to tweak his script due to Fisher's tragic passing. Now, questions will be asked over and over again about how much of a role Leia would have had in Episode IX had Fisher not died. (Episode VIII writer and director Rian Johnson is also writing Episode IX for Lucasfilm and Disney, which will be directed by Colin Trevorrow.)
A sad time for Star Wars fans everywhere. But at some point down the road, after the release of Episode IX, hopefully we can learn what Leia's Episode XI role was originally before her death. Sure, Lucasfilm and Disney can probably CG Fisher's face onto another actor, instead of doing script rewrites, but let's not go there because it's way too soon to assume anything like that at the moment.
Rest in peace, princess.
Related Posts:
Carrie Fisher's Passing Breaks My Heart Because Princess Leia Was Like My Big Sister
Fandom Deserves More of This Fan Made STAR WARS ANIME Short Film
Movie Magic Shown in ILM's STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS VFX Reel
This Hi-Res Disneyland Concept Art of 'STAR WARS LAND' Will Get You Excited For its Eventual Opening