Billie Lourd has long preferred to keep her personal life as private as possible, but the actress has taken the rare step of releasing a public statement to settle family discord by giving her side of the story. ahead of a special ceremony in honor of her late mother Carrie Fisher.
In a statement received by The Hollywood Reporter, Lourd first apologizes to “anyone reading this for feeling the need to publicly defend myself” to the family members, adding that she only does so after being “attacked by them in public” via statements to TMZ and posted on social media. She then confirms that she didn’t invite Fisher’s siblings Todd, Joely and Tricia Leigh Fisher to Thursday’s Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony and “they know why.”
“Days after my mother died, her brother and her sister chose to publicly process their grief and capitalize on my mother’s death, conducting multiple interviews and selling individual books for a lot of money, with the death of my mother and my grandmother as the subject. I found out through the press that they had done this. They never consulted me or considered how this would affect our relationship,” Lourd’s statement reads. “While I recognize that they have every right to do whatever they want, their actions were very hurtful to me during the most difficult time of my life. I chose and still choose to deal with her loss in a very different way.”
Lourd suffered a huge loss when her mother, the beloved Star Wars icon, died in Los Angeles at the age of 60 on December 27, 2016. A day later, her grandmother (and Fisher’s mother), legendary recording artist Debbie Reynolds passed away at the age of 84 in Los Angeles on December 28, 2016. On June 5, 2018 Todd Fisher published the memoir My Girls: A Lifetime with Carrie and Debbie. Joely Fisher also published a memoir, Growing up Fisher: musings, memories, and misadventures in 2017.
The situation came to light on May 2 TMZ reported that Fisher’s brother, Todd Fisher, was not invited this week to see his sister posthumously honored with a star on the Walk of Fame. “It is heartbreaking and shocking to me that I was deliberately left out of attending this important legacy event for my sister, Carrie,” he told the outlet. Early Wednesday, Fisher’s sisters, Joely and Tricia Leigh Fisher, released a joint statement on Joely’s Instagram confirming they had not been invited to attend either.
“For some bizarre, misguided reason, our cousin has chosen not to involve us in this epic moment in our sister’s career. This is something that Carrie definitely wished her siblings were present for. The fact that her only brother and two sisters have been intentionally and knowingly left out is deeply shocking,” the sisters said in a statement. rack.
Lourd noted both the TMZ and IG post in her statement. “The press release Todd Fisher gave to TMZ and the posting Joely Fisher posted on Instagram further confirm that my instincts were correct. To be clear, there is no feud. We’re not in a relationship. This was a conscious decision on my part to break a cycle with a way of life that I don’t want to be a part of for myself or my children,” said Lourd, who has two children with husband Austen Rydell.
Read Billie Lourd’s full statement below.
I have seen the messages and the press release from my mother’s brother and sister. My apologies to anyone reading this as I felt the need to publicly defend myself against these family members. But alas, since they attacked me publicly, I must respond publicly. The truth is that I did not invite them to this ceremony. They know why.
Days after my mother died, her brother and her sister chose to publicly process their grief and capitalize on my mother’s death, conducting multiple interviews and selling individual books for a lot of money, with the death of my mother and my grandmother as subjects. I found out through the press that they had done this. They never consulted me or considered how this would affect our relationship. The truth about my mother’s very complicated relationship with her family is known only to me and those who were really close to her. While I recognize that they have every right to do whatever they please, their actions were very hurtful to me during the most difficult time of my life. I chose and still choose to deal with hair loss in a very different way.
The press release Todd Fisher gave to TMZ and the posting Joely Fisher posted on Instagram further confirm that my instincts were correct. To be clear, there is no feud. We’re not in a relationship. This was a conscious decision on my part to break a cycle with a way of life that I don’t want to be a part of for myself or my children.
The people who knew and loved my mother at Disney and Lucasfilm have created this star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame to honor her legacy. This moment is about Carrie Fisher and everything she’s accomplished and what she’s meant to the world. I’m going to focus on that. May the 4th be with you.
More to come.
