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Would you mind if they recast for Leia?


Metropolis
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Just a hypothetical. Obviously Carrie Fisher's death threw Lucasfilm for a loop. Not just emotionally, but how were they going to handle Episode 9 now? She was obviously going to be in it. How important was she going to be? Does she play into the climax with Kylo Ren? If it served the story to have another actress play the role would you be okay with it?

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I don't believe that Leia was ever meant to redeem Kylo Ren. We're handing off the torch, not pushing the youngsters aside. So in my view the story shifts as much as some think. Not enough to justify recasting, which I wouldn't be up in arms about, but would think was be tacky.

 

If we were at the beginning of Episode VII, I'd probably feel differently.

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I think the story is in serious jeopardy without her.

 

If Leia was always supposed to be absolutely indispensable to the story (Kylo redemption final act for example) where it requires something only Leia can do, then I say recast amd reduce. Add "in loving memory of Carrie Fisher" in the end credits. You're communicating "Leia was crucial to making the story the best it could have been, wish Carrie could have been here." Yes it will be jarring, but people would probably understand.

 

If Leia's role wasn't absolutely indespensable, write around her: have her in the far reaches of the Kappa-Sitaro sector of space to rally support for the cause or whatever, and have Luke or Lando pick up the slack in the story or something.

 

In short, it depends on how critical Leia was. If the story suffers without Leia, recast.

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Honestly, despite Carrie saying the next movie was hers to shine in, given where TLJ ended I'm not sure where Leia's story has to go. Han is gone, Luke is gone, her son cannot be redeemed, and she's all but handed over the Resistance to Poe.

 

At this stage we don't actually need her.

 

This is for the episode 9 thread-- but I'd love for that movie to start with somebody finally responding to her call for help (Lando) and when he lands at the new hideout and wants to talk to her, Poe leads him to a grave. They kept her death a secret so people wouldn't lose hope.

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She definitely had a big part to play in Kylo's arc - he couldn't bring himself to kill her in TLJ and that seemed like a thread they were leaving for IX. The scene where we see Leia and Kylo finally confront each other after the events of the last two movies was sure to be one of the more powerful scenes in the franchise and it sucks that we will never see it.

 

But I'm totally against recasting her. It wouldn't deliver the impact at all with someone else in the role. I remember thinking one of the few flaws in the Dark Knight was when they recasted Katie Holmes. I don't think she is better actor than Maggie Gyllenhaal, but I didn't feel the real impact of her death scene because it was someone else. I'm sure for Star Wars they could do a great job, but why risk the distraction?

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Guest El Chalupacabra

I think there is enough leeway for Episode 9 to do a time jump and explain Leia fell in battle. The movie could simply open after that took place, at Leia's funeral.


 

But to answer the question, I would be OK with the opening scene depicting that battle. Maybe use any existing cut scenes from TFA or TLJ with Leia standing on a bridge. Maybe even having a stand in look alike actress shot from a rear angle and dub a voice that sounds like Leia where needed. I would be even OK with limited CGI to help such a scene flow well. Then have the ship destroyed. Then follow it up with a funeral, once the survivors escape.

 

I even wouldn't mind a CGI force ghost Leia and Luke at the very end appearing to Rey, similar to ROTJ.

 

But I would not be interested in seeing a new actress take on the role for more than a few minutes, to explain Leia's absence from the film.

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Then the only real family interaction for Kylo Ren is with Dad and force image uncle.

 

We'll never really know how it was originally planned to end until after episode 9.

I think they'll probably tell us their original plans after episode 9 airs. I'll be very curious to hear it

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I think there is enough leeway for Episode 9 to do a time jump and explain Leia fell in battle. The movie could simply open after that took place, at Leia's funeral.

 

But to answer the question, I would be OK with the opening scene depicting that battle. Maybe use any existing cut scenes from TFA or TLJ with Leia standing on a bridge. Maybe even having a stand in look alike actress shot from a rear angle and dub a voice that sounds like Leia where needed. I would be even OK with limited CGI to help such a scene flow well. Then have the ship destroyed. Then follow it up with a funeral, once the survivors escape.

Now that TLJ pulled a swerve on us where it looked like Leia was killed in battle but then she Superman's back to the ship, I don't want to see that scenario again. I feel like it'll be a cheap death if they just repeat the scene but this time she really dies everybody. In fact, I think because of this scene the best thing to do is have her die off screen.
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Guest El Chalupacabra

 

I think there is enough leeway for Episode 9 to do a time jump and explain Leia fell in battle. The movie could simply open after that took place, at Leia's funeral.

 

But to answer the question, I would be OK with the opening scene depicting that battle. Maybe use any existing cut scenes from TFA or TLJ with Leia standing on a bridge. Maybe even having a stand in look alike actress shot from a rear angle and dub a voice that sounds like Leia where needed. I would be even OK with limited CGI to help such a scene flow well. Then have the ship destroyed. Then follow it up with a funeral, once the survivors escape.

Now that TLJ pulled a swerve on us where it looked like Leia was killed in battle but then she Superman's back to the ship, I don't want to see that scenario again. I feel like it'll be a cheap death if they just repeat the scene but this time she really dies everybody. In fact, I think because of this scene the best thing to do is having her die off screen.

 

That IS problematic, and I thought about that, too. They had the PERFECT out had they reworked it somehow where Leia was piloting the resistance ship, instead of Holdo. But since she is a General, I don't see her falling in hand to hand combat. Her place would be either on a bridge of a ship, or in a command center bunker.

 

The only other thought I have is she is on a mission to meet with leaders of allies to convince them to join the resistance, and she is assassinated somehow.

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She is just gonna die between movies with little explanation. I think you use her by having her cast a shadow over the Resistance, especially Poe. Have Poe all movie be like "what would Leia do..." then at the end he finally realizes he has to do what Poe would do.

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Well, I think maybe be more aggressive, do something risky. This movie sort of deconstructs the whole "1 in a million" shot type plans that usually work in Star Wars by constantly having those plans fail. By the end of the movie Poe basically learns that they need to be patience and live to fight another die. I could see at the end of IX they are in bad shape and Poe orders/leads a plan that has very little chance to work, only in this case it does.

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Guest El Chalupacabra

She is just gonna die between movies with little explanation. I think you use her by having her cast a shadow over the Resistance, especially Poe. Have Poe all movie be like "what would Leia do..." then at the end he finally realizes he has to do what Poe would do.

As much as I would like an explanation, or even see cut Leia footage from TFA or TLJ in episode 9, I think realistically, episode 9 will very likely play out like that!

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There's really no perfect solution here. Dying offscreen feels disrespectful to Leia, even if everyone understands why. Recasting or CGI feels disrespectful to Carrie Fisher.

Honestly, my preferred solution would have been to recut and reshoot TLJ so she dies in space and Poe learns his lesson from that. They probably felt that would have been disrespectful, but I think it would have been the best of the three options.

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This is going to sound disrespectful, but Carrie Fisher's roles the last two movies were a little hard to watch for me. She looked and sounded every bit of the aging actress who has dealt with substance abuse. She was a far cry from Princess Leia for me.

 

I agree with you FJ. Having her die off screen would seem disrespectful. If they decide to recast they need the right actress. I don't know who that is and I don't envy then if they do decide to recast.

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