'Rogue One' Features A Big Surprise

Leading into the release of Rogue One, Star Wars fans have wondered how many original characters from the franchise are set to show up in the new movie. While a few returning faces, like Bail Organa, were announced ahead of time, the movie has been under such lock and key that even diehard Star Wars fans were forced to go into the movie mostly blind. Yet that ended up being for the best, as one of the biggest surprises in Rogue One is the appearance of a familiar Star Wars character. Ready for a huge spoiler? None other than Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia is in Rogue One , although it's unclear if the iconic actor herself showed up to film the part or if it was all the result of some serious CGI.

As far as fans know, Fisher didn't do any new filming for Rogue One. The actor and author is pretty busy these days filming Star Wars Episode VIII and promoting her memoir, The Princess Diarist. It's possible that she could've found the time this past year to fit in a few days' worth of filming for Rogue One considering how short a time Leia appears on-screen, but it's highly doubtful that happened. Instead, the Leia appearance is likely due just to CGI, or perhaps a combination of CGI and old footage from the original Star Wars film, which is pretty impressive. The filmmakers would've had to recreate the exact look that Leia had back in the days of A New Hope, which came out in 1977, and not make the character feel fake or out of place — and, as fans can attest, they succeeded beautifully.

As cool as the possible CGi is, though (who didn't gasp and cheer when Leia's face appeared on-screen?), it would've been great if Fisher herself had shown up to film a part in the movie. Still, fans can be comforted in knowing that the actor will be present in Episode VIII, set for a Dec. 15, 2017 release. That new movie — and the re-appearance of General Leia — can't come soon enough.

Image: Walt Disney Studios; Giphy