Marvel Comics and Star Wars are revisiting the controversial ending to Carrie Fisher's Princess Leia and giving the character a more developed role in the final moments of her story. The Rise of Skywalker movie originally drew from archival footage of Leia following Fisher's passing.
Marvel's Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker comics adaptation brings the film to life in new ways, and it does so without the creative restrictions that the movie faced after Fisher's passing in 2016. The recently released Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Adaptation #4 features Fisher's likeness front and center on the cover art, and the interior pages tell the story of the Resistance's final reckoning. The issue went on sale May 28, 2025.
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The Rise of Skywalker Comics Flesh Out Princess Leia's Final Moments
The Rise of Skywalker #4's story chronicles Rey and Kylo Ren's epic showdown at its climax, and it features a particularly emotional scene where Leia Organa tries to stop her son, Ben Solo (aka Kylo Ren), from going over to the dark side. The scene features extended dialogue not seen in the film version, with Leia trying in earnest to get Ben to return to the good side. The pages hint at how the scene may have played out in the movies, had Fisher not passed.
The Rise of Skywalker movie premiered in 2019, years after Fisher's death. She appeared in the movie through repurposed unreleased footage from 2015's The Force Awakens. Flashback scenes utilized digital de-aging technology on Luke and Leia with footage from The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
In the film, Leia's dying act sees her attempting to distract Kylo through the Force as Rey impales him. Because the movie relied on unused and archival footage, Fisher's final scenes were much less detailed, with her speaking her son's name rather than actually protesting to him. The new comic scenes show her telling him affectionately, "It's not too late to come home. I won't give up on you."
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The third installment in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, The Rise of Skywalker movie drew considerable criticism from fans, with the difficult decision to include Fisher in a limited capacity frustrating some viewers. Despite grossing over $1 billion worldwide, The Rise of Skywalker was the lowest-grossing entry in the trilogy. It was also one of the most expensive films ever made, with a budget of $416 million.
On Rotten Tomatoes, The Rise of Skywalker has a 51% approval rating, with the consensus being that the movie lacks originality, despite concluding the trilogy in a way that speaks to fans. Now, with Marvel Comics fleshing out Leia's final moments in a much more emotional and believable way, fans can get some closure knowing that the beloved character's final moments have more depth -- at least in the pages of the comics.
Marvel Comics' The Rise of Skywalker #4 is on sale now.
Source: Movieweb.com, Marvel
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