Princess Leia & Carrie Fisher's Weight is Nobody's Business

Carrie Fisher is smart enough, ballsy enough and funny enough to take care of herself when it comes to personal attacks. But when someone you like, whose talent you've really admired for years is being given a hard time, it sort of behooves you to lend a voice of support.

Fisher brought to life the iconic cosmic Princess Leia from Star Wars. She's also in the classic The Blues Brothers. Aside from such classic American cinema, Ms. Fisher has penned several best selling books, along with being one of the more in demand screenplay doctors in Tinseltown. In short, the woman qualifies as Hollywood royalty, or whatever people call it today.

I do know what some people call Carrie Fisher these days - fat, out of shape or just 'not to their liking." You see, Fisher did something boldly verboten and plainly human - she aged. She moved forward in time. She got on with life. To these incredibly feeble and physically minded types, she sinned most unforgivably. They're obsessed with one cosmetic aspect, since there's tons of skinny celebs Fisher's age, though not even half have her warm smile, vibrancy and most of all engaging personality.

Here's yet another example of a middle aged, older or not in prime time female celebrity, judged by our lopsided pop culture scales of justice. It's true, when older actor Harrison Ford geared up to play Indiana Jones again, people speculated on his fitness level. Was he too old? Could he whip into shape? Of course Ford would be performing in a demanding action movie. More examples of male fat phobia are Marlon Brando, Orson Welles or Captain Kirk himself William Shatner ballooning up and down and up again over Hollywood careers, to the delight of fat joke makers everywhere.

What's different about the treatment of aging actresses, especially in Fisher's case is resentment, even of a hatred displayed. These critics, and it's a safe bet those who punish Fisher for being larger now are Star Wars fans, specifically Princess Leia devotees, loathe her for killing off their skimpily clad alien love slave. In Fisher's revealing costume from Return of the Jedi, she's forced into Jabba The Hutt's employ as a golden bikini dance girl. How dare Fisher not live up to adolescent S&M fantasies anymore.

Did these same rabid fans hatefully knock Ford for being out of shape? Did they crack on Sylvester Stallone as too old, or fat to play Rambo or Rocky again, or toss him a few jabs after gawking his more fleshy paparazzi photos? Chalk this juvenile vitriol up to a base sexual attraction for Fisher being denied now because of Father Time. Oh, and remember to blame Fisher herself. To quote her, "You have every right to compare me to Yoda or Elton or Kirstie Alley... I've brought it on myself." That Fisher has tongue firmly planted in sarcastic cheek may go over the more thick headed among her weight centric detractors.

Think what Natalie Portman can look forward to. In 30 years when Fisher's cinematic mom is middle aged, maybe she'll suffer similar crap. I never hear cracks about Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), or Billy Dee Williams or other middle aged Star Wars guys. Carrie Fisher made the unforgivable move of being way too sexy for her own good, and the human move of aging, to my eyes at least, quite gracefully. And most importantly of all with a sense of humor that lets her laugh off all the silliness.

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