The Original Plan for The Rise of Skywalker Involved Leia Wielding a Lightsaber
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Phil Roberts 
Todd Fisher reveals that Leia Organa was destined to unleash her lightsaber and become The Last Jedi in The Rise of Skywalker
The formula of the Star Wars sequel trilogy has been crafted to showcase one of the legacy characters per instalment. The Force Awakens was focussed around Harrison Ford’s Han Solo, The Last Jedi was centred on Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker, and before her tragic death, The Rise of Skywalker was destined to be the vehicle for Carrie Fisher’s Leia Organa.
Sadly, that idea will never come to fruition. However, thanks to the cunning craftsmanship from the team at ILM, Carrie Fisher will be involved in the climax of the Skywalker saga when The Rise of Skywalker brings the saga to a close this December. Using footage left over from the first two instalments, Leia will still have a presence in The Rise of Skywalker and while speaking with Yahoo!, Carrie Fisher’s brother, Todd Fisher, confirmed that the original plan would have seen Leia playing a major role in bringing down the First Order as well as wielding a lightsaber for the first time.
“She was going to be the big payoff in the final film. That was what the intent was prior to her exiting. She was going to be the last Jedi, so to speak. That’s cool right?… People used to say to me, ‘Why is it that Carrie never gets a lightsaber and chops up some bad guys. Even as a person of her age. I said, ‘Obi-Wan when he was in his prime, was Carrie’s age.”
Dare we imagine a finale where Leia Organa unleashed her lightsaber and took on the First Order? That would have been an incredible spectacle, to say the least, but now, only J.J Abrams knows what truly lies in store for Leia.
“They had eight minutes of footage,” Todd Fisher said. “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.”
Eight minutes of reverse-engineered footage doesn’t really do justice to a legend like the unconquerable Carrie Fisher, but at least this way fans will have the chance to say goodbye to their beloved Princess at the same time as the saga and its wonderful characters is retired once and for all. An end fit for a Princess.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker starring Carrie Fisher is unleashed in cinemas from December 19th.
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Phil Roberts is the Owner, Daily Content Manager and Editor of Future of the Force. He is passionate about Star Wars, Batman, Star Trek, Indiana Jones, King Kong, and the Ray Harryhausen movies. Follow him on Twitter @philthecool where he uses the force frequently!
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Source: Yahoo!
Phil Roberts is the owner, daily content manager, and editor-in-chief of The Future of the Force. He is a huge fan of Star Wars, Batman, DC, Marvel, Star Trek, Indiana Jones, Ghostbusters, King Kong, and the Ray Harryhausen movies.
If he’s not in the cinema he’s probably streaming something equally awesome!
