Princess Leia Organa is one of the most iconic characters of all time, and her presence and importance in Star Wars is undeniable. For nearly 50 years, the Princess of Alderaan has impacted Star Wars audiences, but the same actor hasn’t always played her. With the explosion of new Star Wars TV shows and movies in the past ten years, it’s easy to see how executives at Lucasfilm would have to find someone else to fill the role.
In the original Star Wars movie (later retitled A New Hope), Leia Organa was captured by Darth Vader after escaping with the plans for the Empire’s super weapon, the Death Star. Leia sends out a distress signal to the Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi, which eventually leads to her being rescued by Luke Skywalker and Han Solo. Leia instantly proved that anyone could be a princess and also hold their own in a fight. She was fearless and has inspired many generations of young girls. Here’s everyone who has since carried on that legacy by portraying Princess Leia Organa in Star Wars.
12 Carrie Fisher
Last Appeared: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
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Star Wars Projects Featuring Carrie Fisher |
Year |
|---|---|
|
A New Hope |
1977 |
|
The Empire Strikes Back |
1980 |
|
Return of the Jedi |
1983 |
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Star Wars: The Force Awakens |
2015 |
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Star Wars: The Last Jedi |
2017 |
|
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker |
2019 |
The late Carrie Fisher is the original Leia Organa actor and became iconic because of it. Fisher returned to her iconic role in 2015 for the sequel trilogy, where audiences saw Leia take on the role of General of the Resistance. Despite her large role in the sequels, Carrie Fisher suddenly passed away in 2016 after filming Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Unused scenes filmed for the first two sequel films were used for her appearance in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, which came out three years later.
Related Carrie Fisher’s 10 Best Roles Outside Star Wars
Carrie Fisher might have had her breakout role in Star Wars, but she’s been in all sorts of incredibly fun and impressive roles beyond Princess Leia.
Outside of Star Wars, Carrie Fisher was an accomplished author, with multiple fiction, non-fiction, and screenplays to her name. Her other roles include Marie, Sally’s best friend in When Harry Met Sally, and voicing Peter Griffin’s boss Angela on the animated adult show Family Guy. While Carrie Fisher will always be remembered as Princess Leia, she was so much more than that.
11 Billie Lourd
Last Appeared: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
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Star Wars Projects Featuring Billie Lourd |
Role |
|---|---|
|
Star Wars: The Force Awakens |
Lieutenant Kaydel Ko Connix |
|
Star Wars: The Last Jedi |
Lieutenant Kaydel Ko Connix |
|
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker |
Young Leia Organa (CGI) / Lieutenant Kaydel Ko Connix |
It would likely surprise audiences to know that Carrie Fisher’s daughter, Billie Lourd, was heavily involved with her mother’s role of Leia in the sequel trilogy. Lourd first appeared in Star Wars: The Force Awakens as Lieutenant Kaydel Ko Connix and appeared in all three movies. However, in a flashback sequence in The Rise of Skywalker, Lourd portrayed a younger version of her mother. The resemblance between the two is uncanny, which is likely why there are so many calls for Billie to take over the role of Leia Organa for shows set in the New Republic Era.
Outside of Star Wars, Billie Lourd has found success on the small screen. She portrayed Sadie Swenson / Chanel #3 in 23 episodes of the show Scream Queens. Since 2017, Lourd has found success in the American Horror Story franchise, appearing in more than 40 episodes playing a variety of characters. Lourd has also had roles in films like 2022’s Ticket to Paradise, which starred Julia Roberts and George Clooney. Hopefully, this isn’t the last audiences have seen of Billie Lourd in Star Wars.
10 Vivien Lyra Blair
Last Appeared: Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022)
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Star Wars Projects Featuring Vivien Lyra Blair |
Year |
|---|---|
|
Obi-Wan Kenobi |
2022 |
Seeing the Obi-Wan Kenobi series focus on the relationship between the titular Obi-Wan and a young Princess Leia was a welcome surprise. Vivien Lyra Blair was incredible in making audiences believe that she was a young Carrie Fisher, and the emotional beats between her and Ewan McGregor are some of the most memorable of the show. Outside of Star Wars, Blair has been featured in films like Bird Box and We Can Be Heroes. She’s also had guest spots on shows like Fatal Attraction. If Obi-Wan Kenobi ever comes back for season 2, it will hopefully include Blair.
9 Julie Dolan
Last Appeared: LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures (2016)
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Star Wars Projects Featuring Julie Dolan |
Year |
|---|---|
|
Star Tours: The Adventures Continue |
2011 |
|
Star Wars Rebels season 2, episode 12 |
2014-2018 |
|
Disney Infinity 3.0 (video game) |
2015 |
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Star Wars: Uprising (video game) |
2015 |
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LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures |
2016 |
Julie Dolan most famously portrayed a teenage Leia Organa when she appeared in Star Wars Rebels season 2, episode 12 “A Princess on Lothal.” In the episode, Leia works with the Ghost crew to help the rebels acquire more ships for their growing fleet. Though that was Leia’s only appearance in Rebels, it wasn’t Dolan’s. Dolan has voiced Leia a total of four times, but hasn’t portrayed the Princess of Alderaan since 2016. Outside of Star Wars, Dolan has recently appeared in shows like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and Reasonable Doubt.
8 Ingvild Deila
Last Appeared: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
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Star Wars Projects Featuring Ingvild Deila |
Year |
|---|---|
|
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (Leia stand-in) |
2016 |
Archival footage of Carrie Fisher from
A New Hope
was superimposed on Deila’s face, along with Carrie Fisher’s voice saying
“Hope.”
Norwegian actress Ingvild Deila was the stand-in for Leia Organa’s cameo in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Because the film takes place just before the events of 1977’s A New Hope, Deila essentially provided motion capture for the role. Archival footage of Carrie Fisher from A New Hope was superimposed on Deila’s face, along with Carrie Fisher’s voice saying “Hope.” Outside of Star Wars, Ingvild Deila has appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as World Hub Tech in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Deila often appears in low-budget independent films, with her latest one coming out in 2019.
7 Shelby Young
Last Appeared: LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy (2024)
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Star Wars Titles Featuring Shelby Young as Leia Organa |
Year |
|---|---|
|
Star Wars Forces of Destiny |
2016-2018 |
|
Lego Star Wars: Terrifying Tales |
2021 |
|
Lego Star Wars: Summer Vacation |
2022 |
|
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga (video game) |
2022 |
|
Lego Star Wars Shorts: Vader’s Vacation |
2023 |
|
LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy |
2024 |
Shelby Young is an accomplished voice actress who has done ADR voices for many Disney projects. However, when it comes to playing Leia Organa, Young has voiced the iconic character 6 times, most recently in 2024’s LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy. Young also has a large following on social media, where she shows off her skills as a voice actor. With such an extensive filmography, it won’t be long before audiences hear Shelby Young’s voice in some form again in Star Wars.
All four episodes of
LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy
are now streaming on Disney+.
6 Carolyn Hennesy
Last Appeared: LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga (2022)
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Star Wars Titles Featuring Carolyn Hennesy |
Year |
|---|---|
|
LEGO Star Wars: All-Stars |
2018 |
|
Star Wars: Resistance |
2018-2019 |
|
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga |
2022 |
Carolyn Hennesy lent her voice to playing an older Leia Organa in Star Wars: Resistance, more specifically the Leia audiences saw in the sequel trilogy. However, Hennesy has found a lot of success in live-action. She had a recurring role in the WB teen drama Dawson’s Creek, but has two Daytime Emmy nominations for her role as Diane Miller on General Hospital. Carolyn Hennesy has also snagged recurring roles in shows like Cougartown and Revenge, but has most recently voiced Mrs. Godfrey on the show Big Nate.
5 Lisa Fuson
Last Appearance: LEGO Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Out (2012)
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Star Wars Titles Featuring Lisa Fuson |
Year |
|---|---|
|
Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire (video game) |
1996 |
|
Star Wars: Masters of Teräs Käsi (video game) |
1997 |
|
Star Wars: Rebellion (video game) |
1998 |
|
Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds (video game) |
2001 |
|
LEGO Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Out |
2012 |
Lisa Fuson hasn’t voiced Princess Leia very recently, with most of her Star Wars roles coming between the time of the original and prequel trilogies. She has provided Leia’s voice in quite a variety of Star Wars video games. Outside of Star Wars, Lisa Fuson has had voice-acting roles in shows like Hey Arnold! Since 2018, Fuson has taken on the role of Barbie’s mother, Margaret Robert, in multiple animated Barbie projects.
4 Joyce Kurtz
Last Appeared: Star Wars: Lethal Alliance (2006)
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Star Wars Titles Featuring Joyce Kurtz |
Year |
|---|---|
|
Star Wars: Rogue Squadron III – Rebel Strike (video game) |
2003 |
|
Star Wars: Battlefront II (video game) |
2005 |
|
Star Wars: Lethal Alliance (video game) |
2006 |
Joyce Kurtz is a voice actor who has been active since the 1980s, but she lent her voice to play Princess Leia Organa in the early 2000s in multiple, now non-canon video games. Kurtz has had some acting roles in shows like the 2019 reboot of The Twilight Zone. Additionally, Kurtz often lends her voice to ADR work, with some titles she’s worked on including Narcos, Claws, and Big Little Lies.
3 Catherine Taber
Last Appeared: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II (2010)
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Star Wars Titles Featuring Catherine Taber as Leia Organa |
Year |
|---|---|
|
Star Wars Detours |
Unreleased |
|
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed |
2008 |
|
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II |
2010 |
Fans of Star Wars: The Clone Wars will recognize that Catherine Taber was the voice of Padmé Amidala in all 7 seasons. However, Taber has lent her voice to Star Wars in a variety of ways. While she’s voiced the senator from Naboo in most animated titles, she’s also done the audiobooks for the Queen’s Shadow trilogy by E.K. Johnston. Outside of Star Wars, Taber most recently voiced the Silver Banshee in My Adventures with Superman. While Taber hasn’t done a Star Wars project in a while, audiences will hopefully hear her voice Padmé or Leia Organa again.
2 Heather Doerksen
Last Appeared: Lego Star Wars: Droid Tales (2015)
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Star Wars Titles Featuring Heather Doerksen |
Year |
|---|---|
|
Lego Star Wars: The Yoda Chronicles |
2014 |
|
Lego Star Wars: Droid Tales |
2015 |
Heather Doerksen hasn’t played Leia Organa in nearly ten years, but she’s been busy working on other projects. In the television show Van Helsing, Doerksen portrayed Michaela and became a part of the main cast in season 5. Doerksen has also had guest appearances on shows like Resident Alien and The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.
1 Misty Lee
Last Appeared: Star Wars Battlefront II (2017)
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Star Wars Titles Featuring Misty Lee |
Year |
|---|---|
|
Star Wars Battlefront (video game) |
2015 |
|
Star Wars Battlefront II (video game) |
2017 |
Misty Lee is an accomplished voice actor who lent her voice to many animated television shows and video games. Recently, Lee provided vocals for the Clickers in MAX’s adaptation of The Last of Us. Lee has also voiced Big Barda in three DC Super Hero Girls films. In 2023, Lee returned to Star Wars to voice Masana Tide / Ninth Sister in the Star Wars Jedi: Survivor video game.
With such an iconic role like Princess Leia Organa, it’s not a surprise that there have been so many actors who have helped bring her to life, even if some of these titles are no longer considered canon. While Carrie Fisher originated the role, the legacy of Leia Organa will live on in new Star Wars books, shows, and movies. Audiences can only hope that whenever they choose to bring Leia back to Star Wars, they do it in a way that honors all who have played her before.
Leia Organa
The daughter of Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala, Leia inherited her mother’s political skills and her father’s Force power. She was raised on Alderaan as a member of the royal family, and followed in her father’s footsteps by becoming a senator who secretly worked alongside the Rebel Alliance. Alderaan’s destruction changed everything, and Leia became a leader in both the Rebel Alliance and its successor government, the New Republic. She served there for decades, eventually leaving to found the First Order when she sensed its darkness growing. Leia gave much for her ideals, but eventually gave her life to redeem her son Ben.
Created By George Lucas Cast Carrie Fisher , Ingvild Deila , Vivien Lyra Blair First Appearance Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope Died Star Wars: Episode IX- The Rise Of Skywalker Alias Boushh Alliance Rebel Alliance, New Republic, Resistance Race Human Movies Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope , Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back , Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi , Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens , Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi , Star Wars: Episode IX- The Rise of Skywalker , Rogue One: A Star Wars Story TV Shows Star Wars Rebels , Obi-Wan Kenobi Franchise Star Wars Expand
Star Wars
Star Wars is a multimedia franchise that started in 1977 by creator George Lucas. After the release of Star Wars: Episode IV- A New Hope (originally just titled Star Wars), the franchise quickly exploded, spawning multiple sequels, prequels, TV shows, video games, comics, and much more. After Disney acquired the rights to the franchise, they quickly expanded the universe on Disney+, starting with The Mandalorian.
Created by George Lucas First Film Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope Cast Mark Hamill , James Earl Jones , David Prowse , Carrie Fisher , Harrison Ford , Daisy Ridley , Adam Driver , Ian McDiarmid , Ewan McGregor , Rosario Dawson , Lars Mikkelsen , Rupert Friend , Moses Ingram , Frank Oz , Pedro Pascal TV Show(s) The Mandalorian , Andor , Obi-Wan Kenobi , The Book of Boba Fett , Ahsoka , The Acolyte , Star Wars: Skeleton Crew , Lando , Star Wars: The Clone Wars , Star Wars Rebels , Star Wars: The Bad Batch , Star Wars: Resistance , Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures , Star Wars: Visions Character(s) Luke Skywalker , Han Solo , Rey Skywalker , Emperor Palpatine / Darth Sidious , Obi-Wan Kenobi , Ahsoka Tano , Grand Admiral Thrawn , Grand Inquisitor , Reva (The Third Sister) , The Fifth Brother , The Seventh Sister , The Eighth Brother , Yoda , Din Djarin , Grogu , Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader , Leia Organa , Ben Solo/Kylo Ren Video Game(s) Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic , Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II – The Sith Lords , Star Wars Battlefront (2015) , Star Wars: Battlefront 2 (2005) , Star Wars: The Force Unleashed , Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II , Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order , Star Wars Jedi: Survivor Expand