Last week, Carrie Fisher’s brother, Todd Fisher stated that LucasFilm had come to him and Carrie Fisher’s daughter and asked permission to utilize unused footage of her in Episode 9. Speaking with the NY Daily News, he went on to discuss how great the legacy of Star Wars is than him, that it was “the holy grail of storytelling,” and that you can’t mess with it.

This raised questions as to HOW Carrie Fisher footage would be utilized. How could the filmmakers possibly have been able to use old footage for the new film? Well, put away your cork boards. We can put all the speculation to rest. Sadly, it doesn’t sound like Fisher will be in Star Wars Episode 9, after all.

Speaking with Good Morning America, LucasFilm president Kathleen Kennedy denied that claim, stating that Todd Fisher “was probably confused.”

She delved into more details:

“We finished everything in VIII and Carrie is absolutely phenomenal in the movie, and we’re so happy we were able to complete filming in the summer. Unfortunately, Carrie passed away [at a] time when we were well underway with Episode IX in our thoughts. We had not written a script yet. But we’ve regrouped. We started over again in January. Sadly, Carrie will not be in IX.”

It’s unfortunate. From the sound of it, they certainly has some plans for General Leia in Episode 9, but have since changed directions in order to take her death into account. We have to wonder if they’ll kill off her character offscreen (that would be a kick in the pants), or if they’d find a way just to write her out of the plot. Is it possible they changed the ending in Star Wars: The Last Jedi? That’s impossible to tell at this point.

Regardless, this seems to put the final nail in the coffin regarding rumors of her having a role in any form beyond The Last Jedi. No, there will be no digital Leia in The Last Jedi, nor will there be any Carrie Fisher. And if you’re like me, and hoped they may have the courage to actually recast her, then you’ll likely also be slightly disappointed to hear that they changed the story.

What do you think of this news? Are you happy about Carrie Fisher footage not being used in Episode 9? Let us know in the comments down below!

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SOURCE: Good Morning America (via SuperHeroHype)