I hope, in the end, this was a happy and joyous celebration for Billie Lourd. Leading up to Carrie Fisher’s Walk of Fame star ceremony — how is it even possible she didn’t have one?!? — Billie’s uncle Todd and her aunts (one of whom is the actress Joely Fisher) revealed they hadn’t been invited, seeming to use TMZ and Instagram statements as a way to invite public outcry and maybe get what they wanted (that’s my interpretation). Billie, who is quite private about this stuff, eventually released an explanation that included:
“Days after my mom died, her brother and her sister chose to process their grief publicly and capitalize on my mother’s death, by doing multiple interviews and selling individual books for a lot of money, with my mom and my grandmother’s deaths as the subject. I found out they had done this through the press. They never consulted me or considered how this would affect our relationship,” reads Lourd’s statement. “Though I recognize they have every right to do whatever they choose, their actions were very hurtful to me at the most difficult time in my life. I chose to and still choose to deal with her loss in a much different way. […] To be clear — there is no feud. We have no relationship. This was a conscious decision on my part to break a cycle with a way of life I want no part of for myself or my children.”
THR explains that both Todd and Joely published books after Carrie’s (and Debbie’s) December 2016 death: Joely in 2017 and Todd in 2018. Billie seems to be handling it as best she can; at the end of the day, nobody has a right to her time or emotional energy. She is clearly the person running point at this event, so yeah, let it be about her and whomever she wants there and who would be a comfort to her. Lots of people who knew and loved Carrie Fisher were not there because the guest list is always tight. Mostly, I just… I understand having hurt feelings, but take it up with her privately, and be classy in public and say something like, “Billie has had a huge amount of grief to carry, and we’re glad this day was everything she needed to be. We love her and support her in celebrating Carrie’s life however she chooses.” Done. Or, say you had a dentist’s appointment. This other stuff just seems so unnecessary, and you know who I suspect would NOT have appreciated shit being said about her daughter to TMZ and on social media? Carrie Fisher. So, you go, Billie. Love the dress.
Finally, I know Princess Leia will live forever, but Carrie Fisher was a brilliant writer and performer — I saw her show Wishful Drinking eons ago and she was hilarious — and she lives forever in my head and heart as Marie from When Harry Met Sally: “I just want you to know that I will NEVER want that wagon wheel coffee table.”
