The actress’ legendary sequence made her a s*x symbol at the time.
The late Carrie Fisher was known best for her role in the Star Wars original trilogy. Fisher played Princess Leia beginning in 1977’s Star Wars and went on to appear in subsequent sequels, including the eighth episode of the series The Last Jedi.
One of Fisher’s most iconic scenes is the ‘Golden Bikini’ scene from Return of the Jedi. the actress was reportedly extremely uncomfortable while filming the sequence but ultimately liked the way it was received by fans when she saw male fans at the conventions wearing a metallic bikini.
Carrie Fisher Was So Happy To Find Star Wars Fans Celebrating Her Popular Scene
Carrie Fisher in Star Wars: A New Hope | Credits: Lucasfilm
Carrie Fisher had a wild life as an actress in the late ‘70s after being cast as the leading lady in George Lucas’ Star Wars. The daughter of actors Eddie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds, Fisher joined the cast of Star Wars at the age of nineteen and took the world by storm as Princess Leia.
After the film became the highest-grossing movie at the time, Fisher reprised her role as Leia in two more sequels. In the third film of the franchise, Return of the Jedi, Leia is kidnapped by Jabba the Hutt and is forced to wear a golden bikini as Han Solo and Luke Skywalker try to save her.
The golden bikini became one of the most popular scenes in sci-fi history and is often the subject of multiple pop cultural references. While Fisher was reportedly uncomfortable in the scene, it reportedly led to a great phenomenon at Star Wars conventions. Carrie Fisher said to NPR,
My favorite one to see is the metal bikini — on men! That is what has been happening a lot. A lot. And not thin men, by the way! So that makes me feel good about myself, kind of a before-and-after thing — this is way after. Not only is Princess Leia fatter, she’s a guy!
While the golden bikini established the actress as the s*x symbol of the time, the suit seemed to have a greater impact.
Princess Leia Killing Jabba the Hutt Was The Only Solace For Carrie Fisher
A still from Star Wars: Return of the Jedi | Credits: Lucasfilm
Princess Leia’s golden bikini scene is one of the most iconic sequences in the Star Wars franchise and has been the subject of multiple pop cultural references. It has been parodied various times in shows such as Family Guy, Friends, and Chuck, and the original costume itself was reportedly sold at an auction for $96,000 (via THR).
While the ‘slave-Leia’ costume was considered to be every fanboy’s fantasy at the time, actress Carrie Fisher had issues while filming. The actress mentioned that she had to sit straight for hours to avoid showing any creases on her body and she felt that the character had nothing to do until the boys came. She said,
What redeems it is I get to kill him [Jabba the Hutt], which was so enjoyable. … I sawed his neck off with that chain that I killed him with. I really relished that because I hated wearing that outfit and sitting there rigid straight, and I couldn’t wait to kill him.
Fisher also mentioned that she initially thought that Star Wars creator George Lucas was joking when he showed her the skimpy outfit.
Star Wars: Return of the Jedi is available to stream on Disney Plus.
