Although most remembered for playing Princess Leia Organa inStar Wars, Carrie Fisher also made notable contributions toFamily Guy, but the latter intentionally avoided her reprising her seminal role when the two properties collided between 2007 and 2011. Rather than this being a missed opportunity or an accidental oversight,it was actually a conscious decision by the writers that still made to reference Fisher’sStar Warseffortsjust as much as if she’d been cast as Leia in Seth MacFarlane’s animated sitcom.
TheStar Warsparodies are amongFamily Guy’s best episodes- especially the first one, “Blue Harvest.” Even though the feature-length episodes didn’t includeCarrie Fisher’s Princess Leia, there is still a version of the character portrayed by Alex Borstein’s Lois Griffin. Thankfully,Fisher’s established presence among theFamily Guycast pretty much guaranteed her involvementin the playful homage to theStar Warsoriginal trilogy, but in a different role entirely than Princess Leia.
Carrie Fisher Playing Mon Mothma, Not Princess Leia, Was Part Of Family Guy’s Star Wars Joke
Fisher’s Star Wars recasting was a coy wink to her franchise connection
Speaking withLooper,Family Guyproducer Steve Callaghan has explained the quirk of having Fisher among the cast of aStar Warsparody trilogy and not placing her in the role of Princess Leia. The interview confirmed thatFisher was “on board” with the subversive casting, as it prevented her involvement from being too predictable. Instead, voicingFamily Guy’s Angela as Mon Mothma in “It’s a Trap!” (the show’s parody of 1983’sStar Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi) gave Fisher the rare opportunity to play anotherStar Warscharacter entirely.
2007
8.2/10
2010
7.6/10
“It’s a Trap!”
2011
Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi
7.2/10
The role of Mon Mothma was originated by Caroline Blakistonin the very movie “It’s a Trap!” is parodying. Although Blakiston was eventually replaced by Genevieve O’Reilly for 2016’sRogue One: A Star Wars Story, Fisher beat Blakiston’s live-action successor to the punch by six years by voicing Mon Mothma in “It’s a Trap!” However, O’Reilly has gone on to reprise the role sinceRogue Oneby also appearing in twoStar Warsshows:AndorandAhsoka. So, she has arguably eclipsed Blakiston’s version.
Putting Lois In The Princess Leia Role Made Sense For Family Guy’s Star Wars Parody
Peter was too perfect as Han to not also have Lois as Leia
With MacFarlane’s Peter Griffin already perfectly recast as Han Solo in theStar Warsepisodes, there was only really one choice for who would be playing Leia.
Because they end up together, Lois standing in for Fisher’s iconic princess is a great way of echoingHan and Leia’s relationship inStar Wars, as Peter and Lois are already married inFamily Guy. With Lois being a main character inFamily Guy, it only makes sense that she receives equal attention in theStar Warsepisodes, and at least Fisher was still able to revisit the franchise that made her.
Family Guy
Cast
Family Guy is an animated series following the eccentric Griffin family. Led by bumbling patriarch Peter and long-suffering Lois, the family includes the sadistic baby Stewie, unpopular teenager Meg, dim-witted Chris, and Brian, their talking dog. The show explores their outlandish adventures in the fictional town of Quahog.
Star Wars
Star Wars is a multimedia franchise that started in 1977 by creator George Lucas. After the release of Star Wars: Episode IV- A New Hope (originally just titled Star Wars), the franchise quickly exploded, spawning multiple sequels, prequels, TV shows, video games, comics, and much more. After Disney acquired the rights to the franchise, they quickly expanded the universe on Disney+, starting with The Mandalorian.
