Carrie Fisher’s family disavows ‘unauthorized’ new book. But its author is confused

The upcoming book “Carrie Fisher: A Life on the Edge,” by Sheila Weller, is being publicly disavowed by some of the late “Star Wars” actress’ family members.

Bryan Lourd, partner and managing director of Creative Artists Agency and father of Fisher’s daughter, Billie Lourd, sent Deadline a statement Thursday calling Weller’s book “an unauthorized biography” and claimed Weller sold the book without involving the family.

Bryan Lourd, who sent the statement on behalf of him and his daughter, said they learned of the book when they read an excerpt from it in a magazine, according to Deadline.

But in a statement to The Times, Weller said she contacted Fisher’s family representative a few times to inform them of the book and seek the family’s approval. She claims she first reached out in March 2017 and again several months later.

“I was turned down — but in a gracious email — the first time, and invited to re-inquire later. My two follow-ups met with no response,” Weller said.

In the Lourds’ statement, Fisher’s ex-partner writes: “I do not know Ms. Weller. Billie does not know Ms. Weller. And, to my knowledge, Carrie did not know her.

“For all the fans and friends of Carrie, I just thought it necessary that you know this information before you decided to purchase this book or consider what is being said in the upcoming press interviews Weller will do while trying to sell it,” he continued. “The only books about Carrie Fisher worth reading are the ones Carrie wrote herself. She perfectly told us everything we needed to know.”

Weller’s book explores Fisher’s 60-year life — from her start as the daughter of Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher and her career as a Hollywood actress, to her battles with bipolar disorder and drug addiction.

Fisher detailed some of her substance abuse struggles in “Postcards From the Edge,” a semiautobiographical novel published in 1987 about an actress fighting drug addiction.

Carrie Fisher and her mother, Debbie Reynolds, in 1987.

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

She kept writing after that, publishing nonfiction books such as “Wishful Drinking” and “The Princess Diarist,” which cemented her reputation as a serious writer.

Fisher died Dec. 27, 2016, days after collapsing during an 11-hour flight from London to Los Angeles International Airport. A coroner’s statement cited sleep apnea and other factors as the cause of death, including drug use and atherosclerotic heart disease.

The actress starred in the 1975 comedy “Shampoo” before becoming a bona fide movie star as Princess Leia in “Star Wars” in 1977.

“It is my great admiration for Carrie Fisher’s life and work that compelled me to write the book in the first place,” Weller said in her statement.

Weller is perhaps best known for her 2008 bestseller, “Girls Like Us,” an intimate look into the intersecting lives of musicians Joni Mitchell, Carole King and Carly Simon.

“Carrie Fisher: A Life on the Edge” will be published through the Farrar, Straus and Giroux imprint Sarah Crichton Books on Nov. 12.