Late actress Carrie Fisher, best known as playing Princess Leia in the original “Star Wars” film, would have celebrated her 65th birthday on October 21, 2021.
Unfortunately, Fisher suffered a heart attack while on a flight to Los Angeles on December 23, 2016, and passed away a few days later on December 27. Fisher’s mother, “Singin’ in the Rain” actress Debbie Reynolds passed away from a stroke the following day.
It was a difficult time for her family, and especially her daughter, Billie Lourd, who took a moment to honor her late mother with a sweet throwback Instagram post.
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‘Happy Birthday Carrie’
Lourd posted a sweet snap of a young Carrie Fisher wearing a gray shirt and a black vest as she held up a very young Lourd, who is wearing a brightly colored dress. It looks like the photo might have been taken as Fisher was teaching her young daughter how to walk.
In September 2020, Lourd welcomed a child of her own with fiancé Austen Rydell and named him Kingston Fisher Lourd Rydell to honor her late mother.
Instead of a caption, Lourd stayed true to her mother’s favorite style of communication and posted several positive emojis.
Fans quickly hopped on the post to wish “The Princess Diarist” author a happy birthday as well.
“Happy birthday to amazing, beautiful Carrie,” one fan wrote alongside a heart emoji. “We miss you.”
“Happy Birthday to our princess and Angel Carrie!” another added.
“Your mom would be so proud of the woman that you have become and of all your accomplishments,” another added. “I’m sure she’s watching from heaven and smiling.”
Happy Birthday to a very special someone who was never not fun & always highly tolerant of my juvenile on-set high jinks… even when she wasn’t in the mood. #CarrieOnForever ❤️. . pic.twitter.com/ehg7v55FS8
— Mark Hamill (Mar🐫) (@HamillHimself) October 21, 2021
#CarrieOnForever
“Star Wars” co-star Mark Hamill also took a moment to honor the late Carrie Fisher, posting a cute throwback photo of him teasing her hair between takes.
“Happy Birthday to a very special someone who was never not fun & always highly tolerant of my juvenile on-set high jinks… even when she wasn’t in the mood,” he tweeted alongside the hashtag #CarrieOnForever.
Fans took time to honor Fisher by remembering what a positive influence that she and her character of Princess Leia had on their lives.
“Being a girl in the 70s we didn’t have many strong female role models or women to look up to,” one fan commented. “I’m glad she was mine.”
“She changed my life and I’ll never forget her,” another shared. “She taught me what it meant to be a confident woman that goes after what I want.”
“The day the sequels trilogy started, both of you got back together it was like time stopped and nothing changed,” another wrote. “Both you and her are blessings in your right. Today we celebrate her life with laughter.”
The last time Hamill and Fisher shared the screen together as siblings Luke and Leia was in 2017’s “Star Wars: The Last Jedi.” Unused footage from “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” was used to recreate her image in 2019’s “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” with Lourd acting as a body double as needed.