The last few years of Star Wars lore have heavily featured Carrie Fisher's Leia Organa, one of the founding members of the original trilogy from the 1970s and 1980s. Although Fisher passed away before Episode XIII, her heroine remained a central figure in the sequel trilogy as Leia led the rebellion against the First Order. This all led to her on-screen death in Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker as she tried to save her son from the dark side.

Although The Rise of Skywalker had its fair share of issues, Leia's death still came as quite an emotional blow thanks to Fisher's four decades of time in the franchise. Fans had seen Leia grow from princess of Alderaan to leader of a massive army alongside Finn, Rey, and Poe, all while she imparted her wisdom and learned about her own abilities with the Force.

As Rey stabbed Kylo Ren with his own lightsaber on Bef Kir, fans saw the life leave Leia's body as her journey ended in a devastating fashion.

While this happened at the rebels' base in the final cut of The Rise of Skywalker, a new piece of concept art shows another version of how the moment was imagined.

Star Wars Shows New Take on Leia's Death

Star Wars concept designer Phil Saunders took to Instagram to show an alternate version of Leia Organa's death scene from Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker.

In this new version of the scene, Leia passes away in her own stateroom on the Tantiveiv. It also had her on the move rather than stationed on the ground with her troops.

Saunders included the following caption with the image, also revealing that a comet was meant to fly by in the sky outside of Leia's ship:

"Another concept from The Rise of Skywalker. An earlier version of the script placed Leia's death in her stateroom on the Tantiveiv in transit. At the moment of her passing, a comet was supposed to streak past her window. I shaped the stateroom to telegraph its location in the Blockade Runner, just under the cockpit in the hammerhead."

 In the final cut, Leia died suddenly as she led her people from the rebel base into battle, all while Rey battled with Kylo Ren in the rain some distance away.

Leia Organa's Emotional End in Rise of Skywalker

No matter where it took place, Leia's passing in The Rise of Skywalker was always going to be a turning point moment after she played a key role in six of the nine movies from the Skywalker Saga.

This concept art seemingly indicates that there were ideas to initially have her more secluded as she died, almost similar to how her mother Padme died in Episode III. This came after Padme gave birth to Luke and Leia as their mother died of a broken heart, which became something of a family trend after Leia used her energy to keep her own family safe in The Rise of Skywalker.

In the end, the location for this scene didn't make much of a difference in how much of an impact it was bound to have on the story. While Leia's story in the Star Wars legacy isn't over yet thanks to her reported upcoming role in the Obi-Wan Kenobi series, her passing in Episode IX will be one that fans never forget.

Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker is available to stream on Disney+.

As 2022 quickly moves along, Obi-Wan Kenobi is the next Star Wars project up. The series finally sees the return of Ewan McGregor as the titular Jedi Master, with his prequel trilogy co-star Hayden Christensen also reprising his role of Darth Vader. Obi-Wan and Vader are set for a crash course that will lead to their first confrontation since Mustafar, engaging in what Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy has described as "the rematch of the century."

The duel is the ultimate destination for the show, so there will be a lot of build-up to the conflict in the interim. Rumors heavily suggest that several members of the series' cast will be playing Inquisitors, with Rupert Friend performing the live-action debut of the Grand Inquisitor. Vader's enforcers are a volatile bunch, seen previously in Star Wars Rebels and Jedi: Fallen Order going on the warpath to eliminate any survivors of the old religion.

In Kenobi, the Inquisitors are said to be especially ruthless, taking part in several acts of violence that demonstrate the might of the Empire. Eventually, the group will arrive on Tatooine, where Obi-Wan and Luke Skywalker are at risk of discovery. Locating Kenobi is the primary focus of their master, and to do so they'll need to find a way to draw him out of hiding.

Luke is an unknown entity to the Empire; unfortunately, his twin sister isn't. As Obi-Wan Kenobi draws nearer, a new rumor has begun to connect some of the pieces that will bring Princess Leia into the series - and how Kumail Nanjiani's character will come into play.

Leia Captured and Kumail the Contact

Making Star Wars has reported that Obi-Wan Kenobi leaves Tatooine to rescue Princess Leia. The rumor shares that Bail Organa personally visits the Jedi Master at his hut to ask for his old allies' help. At this point, Kenobi departs the planet via public transportation, much like the vessels seen in The Book of Boba Fett.

Obi-Wan's destination is said to be something like "Space Reno," a terrible world that few wish to journey to. It's there that he meets Kumail Nanjiani's character, who will be a contact of Kenobi and Organa's. The contact directs Obi-Wan to a Spice Den where Leia is being held hostage, and the Jedi proceeds to rescue the princess while in disguise.

Secret Agent Obi-Wan Kenobi