The unexpected death of Carrie Fisher [1] has left Star Wars fans with heavy hearts and the production crew scrambling to figure out what to do next — in the midst of their own grief. Fisher had long played the iconic Princess Leia, and her character was set to appear in both of the upcoming Star Wars installments [2]. While she would have a smaller part in 2017's Episode VIII (which she already shot), director Colin Trevorrow hinted that she would have a large part [3] in 2019's Episode IX. On Jan. 5, The Hollywood Reporter reported that [4] "at least two key scenes are planned for Episode VIII and Episode IX: a Leia reunion with Luke Skywalker and a confrontation with Kylo Ren."

A meeting has been set for the week of Jan. 9 between the studio and the filmmakers to discuss how to move forward. While CGI could be a possibility, it's a big gamble; not everyone loved the way the visual effects team re-created General Tarkin (Peter Cushing) for Rogue One [5]. Alternatively, they could rewrite her part in Episode IX and/or tweak her scene in Episode VIII.

We'll keep you updated as information is released.