Carrie Fisher took to the stage at the Screen Actors Guild Awards to pay tribute to her mother Debbie Reynolds, as the 2015 recipient of the SAG Lifetime Achievement Award. She was sincere and funny in honoring her mother, who was famous in Hollywood before the “Star Wars” star was even born.
She kicked things off by confusing anyone in the audience who either wasn’t paying attention, or somehow didn’t know that Fisher was the daughter of Reynolds.
“Not only was my grandmother her mother, she is the grandmother to my alleged daughter,” Fisher said. “It also turns out that we’re neighbors.”
She went on to talk about the kind of mother Reynolds was to her, and the struggles of growing up the child of a famous movie star.
“She has been more than a mother to me, not much, but definitely more. She’s been an unsolicited stylist, interior decorator and marriage councilor,” Fisher said. “Admittedly, I found it difficult to share my mother with her adoring fans, who treated her like she was part of their family. She has led two lives, public and private, sometimes concurrently, sometimes not.”
When talking about all of the money Reynolds has helped raise for treating mental illness, Fisher quipped, “Four-and-a-half million of that money is allocated just for me.”
After taking to the stage, the 82-year-old Reynolds got in a quick dig back at her daughter. “My favorite movie was ‘Singin’ in the Rain,’” she said. “Of course, I had a wonderful hairdo in the film. I had a big bun. So I warned my daughter Carrie — who just got a part as Princess Leia in ‘Star Wars’ — I said, ‘Be careful of any weird hairdos.’ So luckily George [Lucas] gave her two buns. Thank you, George!’”
Watch Carrie Fisher’s tribute to her mother Debbie Reynolds here.