Carrie Fisher Update: 'Princess Leia' Actress Dies At 60 Following Heart Attack [VIDEO]
Beloved Star Wars icon Carrie Fisher has died at the age of 60.
Fisher died Tuesday after suffering a heart attack on a plane the previous week.
"It is with a very deep sadness that Billie Lourd confirms that her beloved mother Carrie Fisher passed away at 8:55 this morning," family spokesperson Simon Halls said in a new statement. "She was loved by the world and she will be missed profoundly."
Fisher, born to show business parents Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher, became a household name with her iconic role as Princess Leia in the Star Wars film franchise. She continued acting all the way through Star Wars: Episode VIII, which is set for release next year.
While no role was able to give her the same worldwide recognition as Princess Leia, she was successful in another field: writing. Her first book, the semi-autobiographical Postcards from the Edge, was turned into a movie starring Meryl Streep. She turned her successful one-woman show, Wishful Drinking, into an autobiography as well.
Most recently she released The Princess Diarist, a memoir centering on Fisher's journals she kept while filming Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope. The book was released on Nov. 22.
Fisher had solid award success as well, having been nominated for two Primetime Emmys (one for her Wishful Drinking variety special and the other for a guest spot on 30 Rock), a BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay for Postcards from the Edge and multiple nominations from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films.
Over the years, Fisher became an important voice in the mental health community. The actress had been very open about her own struggles with being bipolar and how she wasn't ashamed of her disorder.
"I outlasted my problems," she said in an interview with Diane Sawyer. "I am mentally ill. I can say that. I am not ashamed of that. I survived that, I'm still surviving it, but bring it on. Better me than you."
Fisher is survived by her mother, Debbie Reynolds, daughter, Billie Lourd, brother, Todd Fisher, and half-sisters, Joely Fisher and Tricia Leigh Fisher.
