Is this too soon? It seems the Disney/Lucasfilm braintrust is setting a meeting to discuss the future of Leia. According to the Hollywood Reporter, two key scenes are planned for Episode VIII (Dec. 15) and Episode IX (2019): a Leia 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.
Details of where those scenes fit into the movies remain unclear, but insiders say Leia was to have been a bigger part of Episode IX than VIII. Episode VIII director Rian Johnson has finished shooting, but Episode IX doesn’t have a start date; both Force Awakens and Episode VIII began production at the beginning of a year so it is very likely that Episode IX will begin shooting in early 2018 for a December 2019 release. And the status of its script, being written by Colin Trevorrow and Derek Connolly, is unknown. (Disney won’t comment.)
How do you think Lucasfilm should handle Leia’s future? Should they re-film key scenes in Episode VIII, or should they write her out in between films? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.
About Star Wars: Episode VIII:
Star Wars: Episode VIII hits North American theaters on December 15, 2017. Directed by Rian Johnson and starring Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Oscar Isaac, Benicio del Toro, Laura Dern, and more! Music will be composed by John Williams.
