Today, October 21st, marks what would have been the 64th birthday of legendary actress Carrie Fisher. The death of the Princess Leia star in late 2016 hit the Star Wars fandom and the world at large hard, as Fisher was such a titan of the industry. To mark her birthday, social media has been full of messages today from those who knew and adored the actress. Including her on screen brother and co-star of 40 years, Mark Hamill.
Hamill, the Luke Skywalker to her Leia, posted a brief but moving tweet this morning in honor of Fisher. “Happy Birthday Carrie Frances Fisher,” he began, “the world will never stop missing you…” Along with his statement, he shared a sweet photo of himself and his friend from back in the day that captures them in the middle of a faux smooch.
Happy Birthday Carrie Frances Fisher.🎂
the world will never stop missing you….. 💔 pic.twitter.com/0KcQwePz5B
— Mark Hamill (@MarkHamill) October 21, 2020
Hamill and Fisher both returned to the franchise for 2015’s The Force Awakens, though they didn’t get to share any scenes together. That was rectified in 2017’s The Last Jedi, however, which would turn out to be Fisher’s final film following her tragic passing. The character of Leia was able to be present in The Rise of Skywalker, though, thanks to retooled deleted footage of the actress from TFA and her daughter Billie Lourd – who also played Lieutenant Connix – stood in for her mother during a flashback scene as well.
Speaking of Lourd, she gave birth to her first child – a son named Kingston Fisher Lourd Rydell – last month, something that warmed fans’ hearts. Including Hamill, who wished Lourd and her fiancé Austen Rydell all the best. “I can’t think of another baby with both “KING” AND “LORD” in their name. Nice,” he joked in a tweet at the time.
It’s an emotional days for fans, let alone anyone who knew her, but Hamill’s tweet reminds us that Carrie Fisher well and truly made her mark on the world – or galaxy – and will be remembered for generations to come. May the Force be with her.