There are a few things about the entertainment industry that I loathe even more than physical labor. For instance, the usage of the phrase “baby bump” (because body horror should never be cutesy) and the Koven. But what I really loathe, is when they use digital age trickery to resurrect a dead performer, just so the money train keeps rolling down the greed tracks. There’s NO need to prop a corpse up on stage with you via CGI.
Cover the song, pay homage to the character in the script, but let them rest in peace without making the public do a full-body cringe. It should have been a “one and done” idea with Natalie Cole and her pops, right?
Disney has stated that they won’t be using a CGI Princess-General Leia in the ongoing Star Wars saga. That’s respectful. Although the dearly departed Carrie Fisher probably could have written a fun essay in Afterlife Now magazine about the hilarity involved in being made into a Lucasfilm Lazarus.
Disney and Lucasfilm posted the following on the Star Wars website (which, by the way, isn’t offering the Dagobah Swamp Playset for sale that I had as a child and want to retrieve to relieve my nerdy toddler days):
We don’t normally respond to fan or press speculation, but there is a rumor circulating that we would like to address. We want to assure our fans that Lucasfilm has no plans to digitally recreate Carrie Fisher’s performance as Princess or General Leia Organa.
Carrie Fisher was, is, and always will be a part of the Lucasfilm family. She was our princess, our general, and more importantly, our friend. We are still hurting from her loss. We cherish her memory and legacy as Princess Leia, and will always strive to honor everything she gave to Star Wars.
Carrie had already finished filming her scenes for Star Wars: Episode VIII, which is supposed to be released at the end of this year. The BBC reports that she was also set to appear in Episode IX as well, which is still being written and supposed to come out in 2019 barring nuclear war. So that storyline is obviously going to change with this announcement.
By the way, Lucasfilm might have decided upon leaving Carrie at rest after the “Back From The Dead And Ageless!” party that was Rogue One. Spoiler alert! Firstly, they gave Princess Leia’s cameo appearance an Industrial Light & Magic facial that would have made Mariah Carey gnash her teeth out of jealousy. And then they made the deceased-for-22-years Peter Cushing reprise his role from the very first one. Grand Moff Tarkin lives! It was sort of disturbing.
Even Disney must know when there’s been enough grave-robbing of likenesses. “That guy’s not just dead in the current Star Wars timeline,” I whispered to the other Mr. Harvey in the IMAX theater. “Shut up; it’s nerd resurrection magic,” he whispered back.
Pic: WENN