Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Obi-Wan Kenobi.
The latest entry in the Star Wars universe is finally out, with the release of Obi-Wan Kenobi. The first two episodes of the series were released on Disney Plus, a little sooner than they were scheduled to. One element of the series took the internet by storm as it was revealed that we wouldn’t just be seeing Luke being raised on Tatooine, but we would also be seeing a young Princess Leia as well.
Leia isn’t just a cameo, she’s essential to the plot of the show. We first come to see Leia on Alderaan, but soon the young princess is kidnapped. This forces Obi-Wan Kenobi, now going by Ben, to go out of hiding in Tatooine and rescue her in Daiyu. The first episode is filled with scenes of a rebellious ten-year-old Leia, while the second episode, ‘Part II’ has scenes between her and Obi-Wan.
The actress playing young Leia is precious and carrying the torch from the legendary late Carrie Fisher quite well. She especially played well against Ewan McGregor – who is reprising his role of Obi-Wan Kenobi from the Star Wars prequels. But what is the actress’s name and where have we seen her before?
Who is Vivien Lyra Blair?
The young actress portraying Princess Leia is Vivien Lyra Blair. Despite only being nine years old, the talented actress already has fifteen acting credits to her name, including her role as Princess Leia Organa in Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Most people may recognize Vivien Lyra Blair from the Sandra Bullock-led Netflix movie, Bird Box in 2018. She played Bullock’s daughter in the film, who was called Girl and eventually named Olympia. Vivien also recently appeared in an episode of The First Lady in which she played Little Eleanor Roosevelt. She also appeared in the Robert Rodriguez movie, We Can Be Heroes, where she played Guppy.
Aside from Obi-Wan Kenobi, Vivien Lyra Blair is set to appear in a film called Dear Zoe, which features Stranger Things breakout star Sadie Sink and is due for a 2022 release. She is also slated to appear in an upcoming adaptation of Stephen King’s The Boogeyman.
Hopefully, young Leia is not returned to her family in the next episode of Obi-Wan Kenobi, as we all want to see more of the young rebel. It would be a shame if they didn’t give us another chance to fall in love with Vivien Lyra Blair’s performance, as if we were not already.
The first two episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi are currently streaming on Disney Plus, with new episodes releasing on Wednesdays.
