Why Lucasfilm Should Re-Cast Leia For Episode IX

By Reggie's Take on December 19, 2017

Carrie Fisher appears for the last time in The Last Jedi, but what should Lucasfilm do with Leia moving forward in Episode IX and why I believe an unpopular choice among fans is the right way to go.

If you’ve not seen “The Last Jedi” then you may want to stop reading and come back after you’ve watched it. (Potential Spoilers)

As everyone knows Carrie Fisher passed away in December of 2016 and there was a lot of speculation as to how they might handle Leia even in ‘The Last Jedi”. Some hoped that they would do re-shoots that would take into account the real life passing of Carrie, but as we later found out from Kathleen Kennedy they made no plans to change what had already been shot for the movie.

First I want to say that I loved The Last Jedi. I liked what they did with Luke Skywalker, although I would of loved to have seen Luke make it to Episode IX, but I was very satisfied with his overall story arc. I didn’t see Snoke being killed by Kylo, but after thinking about it does put more of an emphasis on Kylo having to be the true villain for episode IX and I’m good with that.

So what about Leia? If you’ve seen the movie then you know that Leia is alive and well sitting in the Millennium Falcon with Rey. So what does this mean for episode IX?

There are many out there who have their own opinions on how the character of Leia should be handled. Some feel that Lucasfilm should kill the character off screen or say she’s off in another part of the Galaxy and have the crawl at the start of the movie be where they deal with it and I disagree with both.

First to kill Leia off screen between movies I feel is the weak minded way of dealing with the real life passing of Carrie Fisher. I would not want this to happen, as it would seem unfair to the character of Leia.

The other possibility is to have the opening the crawl say that Leia is another part of the Galaxy thus explaining why we would not see her in episode IX and like killing her off screen I also do not like at all.

My issue with having Leia in another part of the galaxy while the fate of the Resistance, the First Order and Kylo Ren aka Ben Solo doesn’t sound like the Leia we’ve been shown and have gotten to know over the course of the movies.

So if we shouldn’t kill Leia off screen or have her off somewhere else, what’s left? What’s left is the only choice that makes sense, is best for the character and would allow Episode IX to be best it possibly can be.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi / Lucasfilm / 2017

Lucasfilm and JJ Abrams should re-cast the role of Leia for Episode IX. I’ve read where many are against this and as much as I respect their opinions the majority of reasons I’ve come across are based more on nostalgia reasons then anything. By re-casting the role Lucasfilm and Abrams would be able to finish this particular trilogy properly. By properly I mean finish the story that Leia began with the Force Awakens.

I believe the conclusion to Kylo Ren’s story and Leia’s are connected. Leia of course is Kylo or Ben Solo’s mother and after Kylo killing Han you would think mother and son paths would cross paths at some point.

Kathleen Kennedy said her self that Carrie Fisher was to have a bigger role in Episode IX and after seeing The Force Awakens and now the Last Jedi that would make sense. The Force Awakens was Han’s swan song as it were; The Last Jedi brought Luke’s story to a conclusion so it would make sense that Episode IX would be Leia’s.

I’m not suggesting that whom ever you cast to take over the roll have a staring role, but you have to re-cast to properly bring Leia’s story and this new trilogy to a conclusion. Take the amount of time Leia was going to have for Episode IX and you reduce the role, how much I can’t say, but the character has to have a presence in the film.

Now if you re-cast there is nothing saying that Lucasfilm and Abrams still can’t kill the character off at some point with in the movie, but at least you give Leia a proper on screen death she so deserves.

“But if you re-cast it just won’t be the same and I could never accept someone else in the role.” Okay, some could very easily have this exact thought, but characters in other movies have been re-cast before and the audience was able to accept the new actor or actress in the role with no backlash.

Batman has been re-cast several times, Professor Dumbledore was replaced for the third Harry Potter movie after the original actor passed away between films and no one cried fowl. James Bond has been re-cast many times over the past fifty years and with each new Bond the audience is able to accept the actor.

Do you re-cast a well-known actress or one not as well known? That I can’t answer, but what I can answer is that you find the actress who will be the best fit for the role, someone whose age appropriate, who won’t try and imitate what Carrie Fisher did, but one who will be respectful to the character of Leia and let the essence of the character shine through that everyone will be proud of.

If Lucasfilm and Abrams do decide to re-cast for Leia the harder job won’t be the decision to do so, but for the actress who accepts the challenge of stepping into a role made famous by a wonderful actress and the hard core fans who won’t have kind words no matter how great of job she does as Leia.