Carrie Fisher will be featured in '
Star Wars: Episode IX'.
The late actress - who passed away in 2016 at the age of 60 - was believed to have made her final outing as
Leia Organa in 2017's 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi', which was released posthumously and was filmed before her untimely death.
However, Disney and Lucasfilm have now revealed that Carrie will feature in the closing instalment of the main movie series, using scenes that had been shot for 2015's 'The Force Awakens' but were previously unreleased.
In a statement obtained by Variety magazine, director J.J. Abrams said of the decision to feature Carrie: "Finding a truly satisfying conclusion to the Skywalker saga without her eluded us. We were never going to recast, or use a CG character. With the support and blessing from her daughter, Billie, we have found a way to honour Carrie's legacy and role as Leia in Episode IX by using unseen footage we shot together in Episode VII."
The movie giants also revealed Billy Dee Williams will be reprising his role as Lando Calrissian in the final feature, whilst Mark Hamill will become Luke Skywalker for one last time, despite his character seemingly meeting his end in last year's eighth instalment.
Other returning cast members include Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong'o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, and Carrie's daughter Billie Lourd.
Naomi Ackie and Richard E. Grant have also joined the cast, though their roles are not yet known.
It had previously been reported that Keri Russell was in talks to take on a role in the production, and Variety confirmed on Friday (27.07.18) that she has now closed her deal to join the film.
The use of Carrie's unreleased scenes comes after Disney and Lucasfilm insisted early last year they wouldn't be using CGI to recreate her likeness for the upcoming movie.
They said in a statement: "We want to assure our fans that Lucasfilm has no plans to digitally recreate Carrie Fisher's performance as Princess or General Leia Organa.
"Carrie Fisher was, is, and always will be a part of the Lucasfilm family. She was our princess, our general, and more importantly, our friend. We are still hurting from her loss. We cherish her memory and legacy as Princess Leia, and will always strive to honour everything she gave to Star Wars."