Following the untimely death of Star Wars icon Carrie Fisher, Lucasfilm bosses are said to be meeting next week to discuss Princess Leia's role in the next two movies.
Filming has finished with Fisher on Rian Johnson's Episode VIII, which is set for release later this year; however, production on 2019's Episode IX is yet to start, and Leia is said to have larger role in that.
Episode IX director Colin Trevorrow will be meeting Lucasfilm boss Kathleen Kennedy in Los Angeles to discuss Leia's role, insiders have told The Hollywood Reporter.
Star Wars owner Disney is reportedly set to receive an US$50 million insurance payout over Fisher's death and does have time on its side for dealing with what to do over Fisher's role, but her death has undoubtedly created a major problem the company will be looking to deal with sensitively.
Warning: Spoilers for Episode VII and two scene descriptions for the upcoming sequels follow.
Leia reportedly has at least two key scenes planned for Episode VIII and Episode IX - a reunion with Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and a confrontation with Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), her son who killed Harrison Ford's Han Solo in 2015's The Force Awakens.
These are hugely important scenes not only for the next two films of the saga, but the entire Star Wars franchise. Luke and Leia's reunion will be their first scene together since 1983's Return of the Jedi.
She may be written out and her scenes reshot - as has happened successfully with the two most recent Star Wars films. The scenes described seem too important to be written out altogether, however.
Another solution is to leave Episode VIII with her scenes intact, and create her Episode IX scenes using CGI effects - as was the case with a resurrected Peter Cushing in the Star Wars film currently in cinemas.
"Rogue One is the road map. I have no doubt, given some of the recent work I've seen, there are filmmakers who will be willing to take up the challenge," says Oscar-winning VFX supervisor Michael Fink.
"So far, we have seen moments of success but not full performances. Should we create additional roles for Princess Leia? I don't think so."
Replacing Fisher with another actor, as the Harry Potter franchise did with Dumbledore, is of course a third option, but is not even mentioned in reports.
Whatever Lucasfilm decides, the decision will be a tough one. The company is reportedly still "deeply mourning" Fisher's death.
Star Wars: Episode VIII will be released in December.
Newshub.
