Carrie Fisher is back as Princess Leia in Star Wars 9 thanks to repurposed footage from Star Wars: The Force Awakens - a shocking development that may actually reveal a lot more about Episode IX than Lucasfilm realizes.

When Fisher died in December 2016, it posed a major problem for the in-development Star Wars 9. Leia was set to a principal player in the trilogy-capper (we now know she is the only surviving member of the original trio following the deaths of Han Solo in Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Luke Skywalker in Star Wars: The Last Jedi), but now that couldn't be. Various possibilities were speculated - including a digital recreation a la Rogue One: A Star Wars Story or a recast - but denied. The process led to major changes to Star Wars 9's story, with Colin Trevorrow and Jack Thorne working on various drafts until J.J. Abrams took over as writer/director in September 2017.

Related: Everything We Know About Colin Trevorrow's Scrapped Star Wars 9

Now, we know how Abrams will be dealing with General Leia: Carrie Fisher will be once again playing the role using deleted footage from Star Wars: The Force Awakens. But while the question of if and how Leia will return is answered, the question of what her role will be begins. And, because of Lucasfilm's trademark secrecy, what was cut from Episode VII bar a handful of deleted scenes available on the Blu-ray is an absolute secret.

Or is it? While Disney keeps a tight grip on its productions, there were still substantial leaks on Star Wars: The Force Awakens - most plot points bar Kylo Ren's Skywalker connection were teased - that in May 2015 (seven months before the film released) MakingStarWars was able to put together a detailed plot summary that bears a striking resemblance to the released film. What's most noticeable in comparison is an entire subplot involving Leia and the Resistance wasn't in the finished movie - but was confirmed subsequently by concept drawings in The Art of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Could this be what Abrams is using for Star Wars 9? If so, it may reveal a lot about Leia's role to play in the finale to the Skywalker Saga.

Before we begin, two notes. The first is a spoiler warning: while this is a rumored subplot from a movie released three years ago, as Abrams is going back to The Force Awakens that means anything relating to Leia could come around in Star Wars 9 - and what's included her covers her full arc. Secondly, as a counterpoint, the specifics of the arc are just rumor and so could easily be somewhat inaccurate. With that said, at this point it's the best information we have on Leia's role.

Leia's Original Role In Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Star Wars: The Force Awakens - Leia (Carrie Fisher)

In the released Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Leia has a minor role: she's head of the Resistance and oversees the attack on Starkiller Base for afar, while also reconnecting with estranged husband Han. However, originally Leia had a full subplot involving a Resistance superweapon.

Related: Star Wars Comic May Hint at Leia's Episode 9 Fate

Just as the First Order has Starkiller Base (in the early rumors known as The Catapult), the Resistance has The Warhammer (originally The Sledgehammer). This is a secret project, something Leia takes pride in (thus possibly explaining why the Resistance was conceived as being viewed as radical by the Republic and existed separately).

The Warhammer was reportedly going to be a key part of the attack on Starkiller in the finale; while Poe led the fighter attack on the base itself, the superweapon attacks in space. This led to a repeatedly-described sequence where it was used to "crush through Star Destroyers as if they were tinker toys". It didn't last, however, with the First Order destroying the weapon and forcing Leia's into a retreat. Here, Poe's squadron, the last remaining group, defy odds and orders to destroy the base.

There were other parts of Leia's story rumored that didn't make it into the finished film, most of them relating to Luke's lightsaber which was long believed to be the MacGuffin rather than the map to Ahch-To (this is believable given the still-unanswered mystery of how Maz got the Skywalker saber and general choppy editing around the map). This includes the trailer shot of Maz handing her the weapon. Whether these would be repurposed or not depends on the dialogue, but we're interested in the nonexistent Warhammer arc.

Page 2 of 2: What This Reveals About Leia's Role In Star Wars 9

Starkiller Base from Star Wars

Will The Warhammer Be In Star Wars 9?

Evidently, there is a lot of footage of Carrie Fisher from Star Wars: The Force Awakens that not only has never been released but doesn't directly relate to the plot of the released film. This Warhammer subplot isn't even alluded to, meaning Abrams likely has a lot of ancillary scenes to play with. How directly this informs Star Wars 9's plot depends on how creative the director gets with the old footage.

Related: Rey's Mom Should Not Be In Star Wars: Episode 9

The obvious suggestion would be that The Warhammer story will be worked into Star Wars 9 directly. With an expected time jump, the Resistance could have regrouped and been able to get a foothold in the battle against the First Order to the point they have a major deterrent. Leia can then bring it into battle and it's destroyed, depending on the General's proximity possibly bringing her down with it. This would actually fit where the Sequel Trilogy has been going. The conflict between the Light and Dark has been at the forefront with Rey and Kylo and mirrored in the Resistance/First Order skirmish, but this could make it more tangible; we see the Resistance pushed to using dominating, militarist tactics. With it failing and hope prevailing, it would even fit the overall message of balance.

But this isn't a freshly written plot, and that poses a big restriction. This is almost certainly Leia's final appearance and. even if she doesn't die. it is still the end of a 42-year journey. Should that culmination be her being overwhelmed in pride of a futile military maneuver? That's questionable, especially given the ongoing debate over Leia's far-less aggressive plot in Star Wars: The Last Jedi. And all this is before questioning having another Star Wars movie focused on a superweapon.

The Other Complications In Bringing Force Awakens Leia Into Star Wars 9

Of course, it needn't be adapted so literally. Much of The Warhammer arc will have surely been planned using CGI (something that likewise made it easy to cut), leaving much of Leia's scenes open to interpretation. They can be adjusted and repurposed, or even while that may sound excessive, the scenes and wider story can - to a point - be built around them. Plainly, narratively there's likely room for semi-seamless integration. Going down this path, though, makes figuring out what will and won't be used trickier, although a military command role is still a best fit.

The bigger question with the footage, though, is location and character interactions. Going off her role in the finished film, most of Leia's time was on the Resistance base on D'Qar. This presents an issue given the bunker was destroyed at the opening of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, and that those scenes contained characters now dead such as Admiral Ackbar or objects like the destroyed Skywalker saber, although it wouldn't be out of the question to use digital trickery to isolate Fisher. If, however, it wasn't on D'Qar and Leia was present at the Starkiller battle, then the options are much more open: there'll be green screen space and a fresh location to play with.

Related: Here's What George Lucas' Star Wars Sequel Trilogy Was About

It's also worth mentioning The Last Jedi, which had a considerably larger role for Leia. Because of Rian Johnson's more meticulous approach to planning - and longer runtime - there were fewer deleted scenes from the film. Thus, most of Carrie Fisher's scenes are in the final cut (this would chime with Johnson not changing his story in the wake of the actress' death) and there's little to be repurposed here.

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General Leia returning for Star Wars 9 is a surprise, but a welcome one. It also provides the first time in the entire Sequel Trilogy where we've had some semi-concrete knowledge of where the story may go. However, this is just one small part: to find out how the bigger battle between good and evil closes out, we'll have to wait until December 2019.

Next: Star Wars 9: Everything You Need To Know

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