Our Woman of the Week is Carrie Fisher!
By Emily Scott
Every week, Culturess chooses one woman in popular culture for our Woman of the Week. These women who inspire and empower us to kick ass, take names, fight the good fight, and live our best lives. Today, our Woman of the Week is Carrie Fisher!
Carrie Fisher’s status as icon came early. She was only nineteen when she appeared as Princess Leia Organa in the first Star Wars movie. At the time, there was no way of knowing what a legendary franchise she was signing on for. There was no way for her to know that boys would be hanging posters of her above their beds, or that girls would think of her and be inspired when they did something difficult. She couldn’t have known that the role would make her a legend, but it did.
But let me be completely clear: as much as we love Princess Leia, we love Carrie Fisher even more. Princess Leia was an incredible role model for young girls. She was smart, intuitive, kind, brave, and assertive. She worked hard, saved the galaxy and she was never daunted by the difficulty of what lay in front of her. But all the same and more can be said for Fisher.
Carrie Fisher attends her Book Signing For “The Princess Diarist” (Photo by Jerritt Clark/Getty Images)
For example, Fisher’s career as a writer started quietly, with adjusting her own dialogue in the Star Wars films. Then, she published a semi-autobiographical novel, about a famous movie actress and her up-and-coming daughter, called Postcards from the Edge. She adapted her own novel into a screenplay. Of course, the screenplay eventually became a movie. The film starred Meryl Streep and Shirley MacLaine in the lead roles. From there, studios tapped Fisher to be a script doctor. Script doctors serve as uncredited writers who help punch up jokes and dialogue. It was in this way that she put her own personal stamp on movies like Hook, The Wedding Singer, Coyote Ugly, and even the Star Wars prequels. Though, none of us even realized it.
But that shouldn’t surprise us. Carrie Fisher never waited for someone else to tell her story. In her personal life, Fisher faced more setbacks and challenges than we can count. Her struggle with addiction remains well-documented, mostly because she documented it herself. In addition to her many and varied acting roles, she wrote several memoirs and novels, many of which seek to reveal and make sense of her struggles. In 2006, she developed the one-woman show “Wishful Drinking,” which she also later adapted into a memoir. And she just published a new memoir titled, “The Princess Diarist.” In it, she includes her diaries from the set of Star Wars: A New Hope. Further, she always takes ownership of her own life. And, most often, she shows a knack for turning her darkest moments into beautiful pieces of art.
But perhaps her most important role is that of mental health advocate. Fisher speaks openly about her experiences with bipolar disorder and how her self-medication led to drug abuse. On countless occasions, she spoke out to give hope and resources to people with mental illnesses. She emphasizes the importance of treatment, and of working through one’s issues even though it’s uncomfortable. “We have been given a challenging illness, and there is no other option than to meet those challenges,” Fisher said to an advice-seeker who also has bipolar disorder in The Guardian this year. “Think of it as an opportunity to be heroic – not ‘I survived living in Mosul during an attack’ heroic, but an emotional survival. An opportunity to be a good example to others who might share our disorder.”
Image via Lucasfilm/Disney
At this time, Carrie Fisher works through her a different health crisis. So, we wanted to take this opportunity to remind the world of how inspiring she is. Hollywood expected her to be a starlet, to do as she was told and shut her mouth the rest of the time. But she never felt satisfied with that, and she doesn’t think anyone should be. Carrie’s work, from acting, to writing, to activism, has the ability to make every girl and woman stop and think, ‘What else could I be?’ And her relentless spirit makes us all want to do the work and make her proud.
Thank you so much for everything you’ve done, Carrie Fisher. We love you.
Next: Carrie Fisher Suffered a Massive Cardiac Episode on Plane from London to LA
You can see Carrie Fisher’s work here:
Star Wars: Episode VIII: Coming to theaters December 15, 2017
The Princess Diarist: Available on Amazon or in bookstores
Star Wars: The Force Awakens: Available on DVD now
Wishful Drinking: The documentary about her one-woman show is available on HBO Go. The book is available on Amazon or in bookstores