Claim: Carrie Fisher spoke about her experiences with drug addiction in her later years.

Carrie Frances Fisher -LRB- October 21 , 1956 -- December 27 , 2016 -RRB- was an American actress , writer and humorist who first became known for playing Princess Leia in the Star Wars film series . Her other film roles included Shampoo -LRB- 1975 -RRB- , The Blues Brothers -LRB- 1980 -RRB- , Hannah and Her Sisters -LRB- 1986 -RRB- , The ` Burbs -LRB- 1989 -RRB- , and When Harry Met Sally ... -LRB- 1989 -RRB- .   Fisher wrote several semi-autobiographical novels , including Postcards from the Edge and the screenplay for the film of the book , as well as an autobiographical one-woman play , and its non-fiction book , Wishful Drinking , based on the play . She worked on other writers ' screenplays as a script doctor . In later years , she earned praise for speaking publicly about her experiences with bipolar disorder and drug addiction .   The daughter of the singer Eddie Fisher and actress Debbie Reynolds , Fisher and her mother appear in Bright Lights : Starring Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds , a 2016 documentary about their relationship . It premiered at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival . Fisher died of cardiac arrest on December 27 , 2016 , at age 60 , four days after experiencing a medical emergency during a transatlantic flight from London to Los Angeles . Her final film , Star Wars : The Last Jedi , is scheduled to be released on December 15 , 2017 .