Six years after her death, Billie Lourd pays tribute to her late mother Carrie Fisher.
The Booksmart actress paid a moving tribute Tuesday to Fisher, who passed away on December 27, 2016 at the age of 60. It was just weeks after the 30-year-old gave birth to her first child when Fisher’s death was mourned for the sixth time.
“It has been six years since my Momby died (feels like two but also like 705 at the same time),” Lourd said.
“And unlike most other years since she’s died, this year, these past two weeks have been some of the most joyful of my life. Giving birth to my daughter and watching my son meet her have been two of the most magical moments I have ever experienced. But with the magic of life tends to come the reality of grief.”
Lourd added: “My mom is not here to meet either of them and isn’t here to experience any of the magic. Sometimes the magical moments can also be the hardest. That’s the thing about grief. I wish my Momby were here, but she isn’t. So all I can do is hold onto the magic harder, hug my kids a little tighter.”
Kingston Fisher, age two, and Jackson Joanne, a daughter who was born on December 12th, are Lourd and Austen Rydell’s two young children.
Grandmother Fisher
Fisher would have loved his grandchildren, Loud continued, adding that he’s making an effort to share his favorite things with them and tell them grandma’s stories.
“For anyone out there experiencing the reality of grief alongside the magic of life, I see you,” Lourd continued. “You are not alone. Don’t ignore either. Life can be magical and griefy at the same time.”
Lourd and Fisher shared screen time in The Rise of Skywalker (which ended after Fisher’s death), The Force Awakens, and The Last Jedi.
Debbie Reynolds, who was also Lourd’s grandmother, passed away six years ago. Fisher’s mother suffered a stroke and died one day after Fisher passed away.
Mother-Daughter Tandem
With 2015’s The Force Awakens, Carrie Fisher made a comeback to the Star Wars franchise with her real-life child, Lourd.
Lourd was persuaded to audition by Fisher, a.k.a. Princess Leia and the two ended up having sequences in both The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi (with Lourd’s Lieutenant Connix sporting some recognizable hair).
In an emotional piece she wrote for Time, Lourd is now talking about her relationship with her late mother and Leia’s legacy.
She adds that although her parents warned her against acting and kept her away from movie sets when she was younger, as she got older, she became captivated by her mother’s work and how the character of Leia connected with so many people over the years.
She had never been on a film set before, and Fisher tailed her like a stage mother on the first day of rehearsal for The Force Awakens.
“In the moment, I was humiliated that my mom was moming me on my first day of work, on the Star Wars set, of all places,” Lourd wrote. “But now I realize she was just being protective.”
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Lourd Shares Screen with Mother
Lourd continues, Fisher decided to “embrace the odd galactic nepotism of it all” and see to it that Lieutenant Connix had those Leia-approved space buns.
They later collaborated on the screen in 2017’s The Last Jedi and were slated to again in the upcoming Rise of Skywalker (out in theaters on December 20). Still, Fisher passed away in December 2016 before production could start.
“One of the last times we spoke on the phone, she talked about how excited she was that the next movie in the trilogy was going to be Leia’s movie,” Lourd said. “Her movie.”
Director J.J. Abrams of Rise of Skywalker ultimately Lourd agreed to reprise her role as Connix for one final time after Abrams incorporated Leia into the narrative using archival footage of Fisher.
“I knew it would be one of the most painful, difficult things I would ever do, but I said yes for her — for my mom,” she elaborated. “For Leia. For everyone, Leia means so much to. For everyone, Leia gives strength to.”
Here is Lourd’s entire essay.
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Birthday Celebration
In 2019, Lourd performed a special musical number in honor of her mother, Carrie Fisher, whose 63rd birthday would have been that day.
“Today would have been my Momby’s 63rd birthday,” Lourd wrote on her Instagram post with a video.
“Not that I’m some kind of grief expert by any means, but on milestones (or whatever you want to call them) like this, I like to celebrate her by doing things that she loved to do.
“So here’s a little video of me singing one of her favorite songs (American girl by Tom petty) in one of her favorite places (her bathtub, of course). I’ll probably have a pint of vanilla Haggen Dazs and a Coca-Cola for dinner.”
Mark Hamill, Fisher’s Star Wars co-star and lifelong friend, also posted a vintage snapshot of the two dancing and having fun together.
“Being happy isn’t getting what you want. It’s wanting what you have,” he wrote along with the image, with the #HBD (which means Happy Birthday).
Photo: Page Six
