Harrison Ford Said Carrie Fisher’s Memoir About Their Affair Was ‘Strange’
When Carrie Fisher revealed that she and Harrison Ford once had an affair, Star Wars fans were baffled. The idea of Princess Leia and Hans Solo engaging in a real-life romance was something they never saw coming. Fisher wrote about the affair in her memoir, titled The Princess Diarist.
The Princess Diarist came out one month before Fisher died in December 2016. Ford opened up about his feelings about the memoir the following year.
How Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford’s affair began (and ended)
In 1976, Fisher and Ford met for the first time. Ford was 33-years-old and had several movie roles under his belt when he booked the job as Hans Solo. The actor also married his college sweetheart and had two kids by the time he and Fisher got to know each other. In her memoir, Fisher admitted that Ford was the last person she thought would be interested in her on-set. When they filmed the first Star Wars, Fisher was 19-years-old. However, the pair started sleeping together after Ford kissed her at George Lucas’ party.
Fisher wrote about having mixed feelings about the affair with Ford. Although she described him as “cold” and “inaccessible,” she also became “obsessed” with him while filming. However, she couldn’t tell anyone about the relationship, so Fisher kept a diary to document her feelings.
“I have filled him in to be unobtainable, disinterested, attractive, and bored with my company,” she wrote of Ford. “My ideal mate.”
“I am totally at his mercy,” Fisher continued. “I’m frightened of the power I have given him over me and how he will almost certainly abuse it, merely by not being fully aware he has it.”
The sexual encounters between Fisher and Ford lasted for three months. After filming ended, Ford went back to his wife. While the actors continued to work together, neither spoke of the affair again until Fisher’s memoir.
How Harrison Ford felt about Carrie Fisher’s memoir about their affair
Ford and Fisher reunited in 2015 to film Star Wars: The Force Awakens. During this time, Fisher unearthed the journals she had regarding their relationship. In an interview with NPR, the When Harry met Sally actor confirmed that Ford knew of her intention to turn the diaries into a book. She also allowed Ford to make any changes that he saw fit.
Despite the controversy surrounding the memoir, Ford opted not to speak about it. However, he shared a short take on the book with GQ in September 2017.
“It was strange. For me,” Ford said of the book.
When asked if he read the memoir in its entirety, Ford said, “No. I didn’t.”
Harrison Ford didn’t want to discuss the affair with Carrie Fisher
In his interview with GQ, Ford continued to dodge questions about his exact feelings about Fisher’s memoir. Instead of harping how Fisher described him, Ford said he didn’t want to say anything about his late co-star.
“You know, with Carrie’s untimely passing, I don’t really feel that it’s a subject that I want to discuss,” Ford said.
Since Fisher’s death, Ford has continued to speak fondly about her. In 2018, the actor said he wished Fisher could celebrate their fellow Star Wars co-star, Mark Hamill’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, per Today.
“When thinking about today, I was really sorry that we don’t have the other member of our trio here to celebrate with us,” Ford said in honor of Fisher. “But I feel her presence.”
