In case you missed it, Vanity Fair recently released four special covers for its Star Wars 40th anniversary edition, including one featuring the late Carrie Fisher in character as General Leia Organa.
Fisher died in December last year, just a few months after shooting wrapped on The Last Jedi. The Vanity Fair shoot took place during filming.
As if the cover wasn't enough, yesterday Vanity Fair released some more portraits from the shoot, including this one of Carrie on set with her daughter, Billie Lourd.
The love in this photo is way too much to handle and I am not even remotely OK.
And as if THAT wasn't enough, the cover story includes some pretty devastating quotes from the cast and filmmakers:
“She was having a blast,” said [the president of Lucasfilm, Kathleen] Kennedy. “The minute she finished, she grabbed me and said, ‘I’d better be at the forefront of IX!’ Because Harrison was front and centre on VII, and Mark is front and centre on VIII. She thought IX would be her movie. And it would have been.”
Cast members Daisy Ridley and John Boyega also shared their memories of working with Carrie.
"Carrie lived her life the way she wanted to, never apologising for anything," Daisy said, "which is something I’m still learning."
"Embarrassed" is the wrong word, but there were times through it all when I felt like I was… shrinking. And she told me never to shrink away from it – that it should be enjoyed.
John talked about how Carrie helped him deal with the racist backlash he received after being cast in The Force Awakens.
I remember – and forgive me, I’m going to drop the f-bomb, but that’s just Carrie – she said, "Ah, boohoo, who fuckin’ cares? You just do you." Words like that give you strength. I bore witness in a million ways to her sharing her wisdom with Daisy too.
The most heartbreaking quote, though, comes from Mark Hamill, who plays Carrie's onscreen brother, Luke Skywalker.
I can’t say that phrase, what you just said: Carrie’s name and then the d-word. Because I think of her in the present tense. Maybe it’s a form of denial, but she’s so vibrant in my mind, and so vital a part of the family, that I can’t imagine it without her. It’s just so untimely, and I’m so angry.
We can't wait to see The Last Jedi – oh, and happy 40th anniversary, Star Wars. ❤️
