'Star Wars Episode 8' cast news 2017: After Carrie Fisher's death, will Princess Leia be in Episodes 8 and 9?

With the whole galaxy far far away still mourning the loss of its most formidable freedom fighter in General Organa, Carrie Fisher's death arguably will have a bigger impact in how the upcoming installments of the episodic film will spin their overall narrative.

The actress who plays the iconic Princess Leia from the 1977 hit, "Star Wars" original trilogy, had just come back into the lore as the courageous leader of the Resistance in last year's "Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens." While the character may have limited screen time during the J.J. Abrams film, it is no secret that she is being geared up to take a more formidable role in the succeeding saga films. The character is the thread that binds the story together with her hand on every separate storyline being presented in the contemporary trilogy. A report by Deadline confirms this, along with a tip that Fisher and her daughter, Billie Lourd, who was also part of the franchise's comeback film, were both able to finish shooting their respective roles.

If speculations that the upcoming Rhian Johnson movie will be taking a more political turn mining sources from Claudia Gray's canon novel, "Bloodline," Princess Leia's involvement might even be bigger than expected. It is important to note that during "The Force Awakens," there is really no prominent governing body manning the affairs of the galaxy. From the book, Leia's prowess coming from a political background as well as her efforts in defeating the Empire have been eclipsed when word came out that she is Darth Vader's biological daughter. Politicians shun her away which could perhaps be the reason that her Resistance Army is minuscule than what it is supposed to be.

Outside of her social duty, she additionally has to deal with her son working against her cause. This is on top of the emotional scar brought about by Kylo Ren's (Adam Driver) latest and arguably biggest misdeed thus far, killing his own father, Han Solo (Harrison Ford). Lastly, Leia is also actively looking for his brother, Luke (Mark Hamill), who has gone into hiding in recent years.

As of now, Lucasfilm Ltd. has remained mum about the situation. In hindsight, next year's "Episode VIII" is not the real problem in this situation given that principal photography for the film has already wrapped up with a tentative reshoot schedule middle of 2017. The complications may arise from how the story will take on a different spin moving forward given that at some point they will eventually have to address the fact that Fisher will not be able to do "Star Wars: Episode IX."

A few months ago, leaks of a particular sequence from "Episode VIII" between Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) and the yet-to-be-named character of Laura Dern arguing about taking orders inadvertently revealed that Leia was badly injured in a ship crash. While this has yet to be confirmed, whether in a reporting or narrative standpoint, it is an interesting twist in terms of dealing with supposedly losing the Resistance leader.

"Star Wars: Episode VIII" is set to arrive in cinemas on Dec. 15, 2017 followed by "Star Wars: Episode IX" on May 23, 2019.