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\nThe gold bikini-style costume that Carrie Fisher wore as Princess Leia while making \u00ab\u00a0Return of the Jedi\u00a0\u00bb in the \u00ab\u00a0Star Wars\u00a0\u00bb franchise has sold for $175,000, according to the auction house that handled the sale.
The costume was made famous when Fisher wore it at the start of the 1983 film when Leia was captured by Jabba the Hutt at his palace on Tatooine and forced to be a slave.
The costume, one of the most memorable in the \u00a0\u00bb Star Wars \u00a0\u00bb movies, was sold on Friday by Dallas-based Heritage Auctions.
Joe Maddalena, Heritage’s executive vice president, said the costume that was sold was one that was screen tested and worn by Fisher on the movie’s set but ultimately did not make it onto the final version of the film as it was switched out for one that was more comfortable.
The auction house said the costume sparked a bidding war among collectors.
Maddalena said he wasn’t surprised by the attention bidders gave to the costume as well as to a model of a Y-wing fighter that took on the Death Star in the original \u00ab\u00a0Star Wars\u00a0\u00bb film that sold for $1.55 million. He said \u00ab\u00a0Star Wars\u00a0\u00bb and \u00ab\u00a0Star Trek\u00a0\u00bb have very avid fan bases.
\u00ab\u00a0The power of ‘Star Wars’ proves itself again. These movies are just so impactful\u00a0\u00bb, Maddalena said.
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In a November 2016 interview with NPR’s \u00ab\u00a0Fresh Air\u00a0\u00bb, Fisher said wearing the costume was not her choice.
\u00ab\u00a0When (director George Lucas) showed me the outfit, I thought he was kidding and it made me very nervous. I had to sit very straight because I couldn’t have lines on my sides, like little creases. No creases were allowed, so I had to sit very, very rigid straight\u00a0\u00bb, said Fisher, who died about a month after the interview.
Richard Miller, who created the costume, said in an interview that’s included in a \u00ab\u00a0Star Wars\u00a0\u00bb box set that he used soft material to build the costume so that Fisher could move around more freely.
\u00ab\u00a0However, she still didn’t like it. I don’t blame her\u00a0\u00bb, said Miller, who was the chief sculptor for Industrial Light & Magic, the visual effects company founded by \u00ab\u00a0Star Wars\u00a0\u00bb creator George Lucas. \u00ab\u00a0I did put leather on the back of it to help it feel better.\u00a0\u00bb
The costume had its share of critics, who thought it sexualized Fisher for the franchise’s male fan base.
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In \u00ab\u00a0Interview\u00a0\u00bb magazine in 2015, Fisher told actor Daisy Ridley, who starred in \u00ab\u00a0Star Wars: The Force Awakens\u00a0\u00bb, \u00ab\u00a0You’re going to have people have fantasies about you. That will make you uncomfortable, I’m guessing.\u00a0\u00bb She pushed back against the idea of being a sex symbol and told Ridley to \u00ab\u00a0fight for your outfit.\u00a0\u00bb
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