Carrie Fisher's Brother Says 'Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker' Was Supposed to See Leia as a Jedi

With the release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is just around the corner, many fans are wondering what director J.J. Abrams will do about the role of Princess Leia, played by the late Carrie Fisher.

Since her unexpected passing in 2016 at the age of 60, the franchise has re-purposed unused footage of Fisher, with the permission of her family, from The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi to create her performance in the upcoming film, rather than use CGI. Because of the circumstances of her death, the incorporation of Fisher into the final installment of the franchise will likely be an emotional one. However, CBR reports that the late actor’s original role in the upcoming installment was meant to be much more action-packed.

Carrie’s brother, Todd Fisher, recently sat down with Yahoo! and explained that Abrams had originally planned to put his sister in the center of the action, giving her a more physical role. He claimed, “She was going to be the big payoff in the final film. She was going to be the last Jedi, so to speak. That’s cool, right?"

According to Todd, the fact that Abrams and Carrie were so close is displayed in the care he put into including her in the upcoming movie He stated:

“The truth is that J.J. Abrams was great friends with Carrie He had an extraordinary sense of love for her. They had eight minutes of footage. They grabbed every frame and analyzed it... and then reverse-engineered it and [got] it into the story the right way. It’s kind of magical.”

It will be heartwarming to see Leia on the silver screen for one last adventure when The Rise of Skywalker premieres Dec. 20, 2019.