Star Wars: The Last Jedi will not be affected by Carrie Fisher’s death: Leia “appears throughout”

Carrie Fisher’s tragic passing may have given way to whispers about General Leia Organa’s role in the upcoming Star Wars: The Last Jedi but, according to Disney CEO Bob Iger, Fisher’s performance is going to be left untouched – and that includes ruling out a CGI Leia a la Star Wars: Rogue One.

The Hollywood Reporter have the details on Leia’s imminent future in the franchise, with Iger stating, "We had to deal with tragedy at the end of 2016. Carrie appears throughout Episode 8 We are not changing Episode 8 to deal with her passing. Her performance remains as it is in Episode 8”

Iger also confirms that The Last Jedi won’t be going along the Rogue One route and using a CGI Leia to fill in any gaps: “In Rogue One, we had some digital character. We are not doing that with Carrie."

Reading between the lines, it might be important (or a mere slip) that there’s no mention of Star Wars 9 when it comes to Leia, so that’s very much still up in the air for the time being.

Image: Lucasfilm

Bradley Russell

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.