Carrie Fisher will not appear in “Star Wars: Episode IX,” Kathleen Kennedy said during an interview with ABC News on Friday.
“Sadly, Carrie will not be in nine,” the president of Lucasfilm said. “But we will see a lot of Carrie in ‘Eight.’”
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Previously, Fisher’s brother, Todd Fisher, made comments suggesting that Carrie would return.
New York Daily News’ Confidential reports that while attending the opening night gala of the TCM Film Festival in Los Angeles, Todd Fisher said that Disney would love to bring back Princess Leia and that he and Fisher’s daughter, Billie Lourd, have given the studio permission to use recent footage for the final movie of the new trilogy.
However, Kennedy has said otherwise. “He was probably confused because we finished everything in ‘Eight’ (The Last Jedi) and Carrie is absolutely phenomenal in the movie and we’re so happy that we are able to complete shooting in the summer,” Kennedy said. “Unfortunately, Carrie passed away … so by the time we were well under way with ‘Episode Nine,’ in our thoughts we’ve not written the script yet but we’ve regrouped, we started over again in January, so sadly Carrie will not be in Nine.”
In December, TheWrap reported that Fisher had wrapped filming for “Star Wars: Episode VIII” before her death. However, at the time, it was unknown how her passing might impact future installments in the blockbuster franchise and whether Leia, a character Fisher originated in 1977’s “Star Wars,” was expected to play a significant role in “Episode IX.”
In January, Lucasfilm issued a statement concerning the future of General Leia Organa in future “Star Wars” installments, saying no CGI would be involved.
“We don’t normally respond to fan or press speculation, but there is a rumor circulating that we would like to address. We want to assure our fans that Lucasfilm has no plans to digitally recreate Carrie Fisher‘s performance as Princess or General Leia Organa,” said a statement on starwars.com.
“Carrie Fisher was, is, and always will be a part of the Lucasfilm family. She was our princess, our general, and more importantly, our friend. We are still hurting from her loss. We cherish her memory and legacy as Princess Leia, and will always strive to honor everything she gave to ‘Star Wars.’”
Fisher died on Dec. 27 at the age of 60 after suffering a massive heart attack. Her mother, Debbie Reynolds, the 84-year-old best known for starring in movie musical “Singin’ in the Rain,” died of a fatal stroke on Dec. 28, just one day after Fisher.