Billie Lourd steps into mum Carrie Fisher's shoes in 'Rise of Skywalker' behind the scenes clip

Billie Lourd stepped into the shoes of her mother, Carrie Fisher, for a crucial flashback scene in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker — as seen in this behind-the-scenes clip.

Lourd doubled for a younger incarnation of General Leia for a scene in which she is shown undergoing Jedi training with her brother, Luke Skywalker.

The scene digitally incorporated performances given by Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher in the original trilogy of Star Wars movies in order to show them in the flashback.

Read more: Lourd “didn’t really like” Leia as a child

Visual effects supervisor Roger Guyett says in the new clip that it was “amazing” for Lourd to be able to portray her mother in the film.

Leia’s presence in The Rise of Skywalker was accomplished via a combination of digital trickery and unused footage from The Force Awakens, following her passing in December 2016.

Producer Michelle Rejwan discusses the genesis of the scene, which provided a previously unseen glimpse at Leia’s force powers.

Read more: Todd Fisher says Leia would’ve been “the last Jedi”

She says: “We asked some really exciting questions at the beginning of this as far as Leia’s force strength. Did she train as a Jedi?

“And the decision to make her part of that story was a pretty exciting one to us.”

Earlier this year, VFX supervisor Patrick Tubach confirmed that Lourd had doubled for Fisher in the scene.

He said: “It was a poignant thing, and something that nobody took lightly — that she was willing to stand in for her mom.”

The 27-year-old Lourd also played Resistance fighter Lieutenant Connix in the sequel trilogy.

The Rise of Skywalker, directed by J.J. Abrams, brought the Skywalker Saga to an end, completing the story that started in 1977.

Though fans and critics were divided on the film, it brought in a huge box office haul of $1.07bn (£856m) worldwide.

Read more: The Jim Henson tribute cut from Rise of Skywalker

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker arrives digitally in HD and 4K Ultra HD™ on 13 April, and physically in 4K Ultra HD™, Blu-ray™, 3D Blu-ray™ and DVD on 20 April.