Star Wars was one of the first films that really did a booming business in the merchandising department and opened up a whole new avenue of income for movie producers to tap into. But because this wasn’t a big thing when contracts were originally signed, many wound up being left out of the revenue flow. Carrie Fisher, for instance, who arguably is the most memorable actress in the original films, with her strong portrayal of Princess Leia, apparently did not get on the gravy train according to an interview she did with The Daily Beast.
It was an interesting revelation. Most would assume that the actors in Star Wars, especially the big three, would be rolling in cash since their likeness is literally on millions of things, but they aren’t. Because they didn’t sign any sort of deal that would allow them to get such royalties. Perhaps that is why Harrison Ford is so bitter. Oddly enough, though, the least likely to have merchandise, the old Obi-Wan Kenobi, Sir Alec Guiness did have such a deal, which might explain why there is far less merchandise for him. Or it could be that kids are not really a fan of old guys that live in the middle of a desert and can be a bit crazy. I’m sure his younger Ewan McGregor likeness is much more popular and the new actors, no doubt, have such stipulations in their contracts, which should set Hayden Christiansen, Natalie Portman, and others for life.
It’s really a shame that she’s not getting a cut. Just the sales of the slave bikini outfit alone could probably fund her family forever. She says it particularly stung when shopping in a store and seeing Princess Leia birthday cake inserts and wondering, after buying them, how much she would have gotten. Probably a lot.
Fisher admits that she’s tried to get Lucas to at least apologize for it, but he hasn’t done so. He’s too busy fiddling with his work and swimming in cash to probably care. The sad part is that she doesn’t even get anything from all the new versions that have been on TV or on DVD/Blu-Ray, just from the original theatrical releases. And there might have been hope that she could get a bit from the 3D versions coming out, but the project will most likely be shuttered by the time they get to her episodes.
While it’s doubtful that Fisher is on food stamps, it still sucks to get the short end of the stick…
