Star Wars Slave Leia Merchandise To Be Retired?

It looks as though Slave Leia may have had her day… as ‘Star Wars’ bosses put an end to the slinky, gold-clad bikini.

According to Making Star Wars, the iconic Slave Leia image is being pulled from all upcoming ‘Star Wars’ marketing materials ahead of ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’.

“There are rumours Princess Leia’s Return of the Jedi bikini costume is being ‘retired’,” they explained. “The rumor appears to now have some legs. Perhaps because of the recent controversy around the costume and its level of appropriateness for conservative parents and its title for more liberal parents has just made the outfit something to stay away from.”

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It’s something we’ve heard for a long time – that Disney just isn’t happy promoting the Slave Leia image. And that’s understandable, considering the company’s family-friendly focus.

Especially when you look at Carrie Fisher’s harsh words on the subject…

“You should fight for your outfit,” she recently told ‘Star Wars 7’ newcomer Daisy Ridley. “Don’t be a slave like I was… You keep fighting against that slave outfit.”

But while there seems to have been a change in the tide, there hasn’t been much evidence to support the rumour… until now.

Enter J Scott Campbell – a prominent comic book artist, who has worked on the ‘Star Wars’ comic books over at Marvel.

“Daisy Ridley won’t have to fight against anything,” he said via Facebook. “Disney is already well on its way to wiping out the ‘slave’ outfit from any future products period. You will NOT see any future merchandising featuring the slave outfit ever again. Trust me.”

“I’ve heard it from two sources,” he confirmed. “We can’t even draw Leia in a sexy pose at Marvel, let alone in that outfit! We also had a 3-D statue killed at a major manufacturer because there will no longer be any SL merchandise.”

Of course, you can always argue that the depiction of Princess Leia in the slave outfit is more about how she overcomes her oppressor – showing her as a strong woman who can break out of those shackles.

And then there’s the fact that it was always referred to as a ‘dancing girl’s outfit’ in the ‘Return of the Jedi’ script… and was only given the ‘slave’ moniker later, by fans.

But the image itself may have proved a bit too much for the folks at Disney, who likely want to focus on a more family-friendly image in the galaxy far, far away. And it looks as though Daisy Ridley probably won’t have to suffer the same indignity.

Does this mean we won’t see a re-release of the original ‘Return of the Jedi’ theatrical poster, or any of the other merchandise depicting Leia in her gold bikini?

For now, we’ll have to wait and see… but this movie icon may be retired for good.

‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ heads to cinemas on 17 December 2015.

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Picture Credit: Lucasfilm, YouTube