Princess Leia’s Bikini is Being Auctioned! Jabba Approves!

Heritage Auctions Hollywood Entertainment event will take place between July 25 and 26. It includes items from the olden ages of movie making, along with some more contemporary items. Yes, and a lot of Star Wars stuff!

The prop on everyone’s lips (yes, please) is Princess Leia’s Slave Bikini. The item, which first appeared in 1983’s Return of the Jedi, has gone on to become as iconic as the heroic rebel leader.

This piece of cinematic history’s starting bid is $30,000.

“This iconic 7-piece costume ensemble includes (1) bikini brassiere, (2) bikini plates (front and back), (2) hip rings, (1) armlet, and (1) bracelet, created by ILM Chief Sculptor, Richard Miller. This costume is comprised of resin and urethane production pieces from the sculptor’s collection. Based on designs by Nilo Rodis-Jamero, Miller created a wire armature on a mannequin created from Carrie Fisher’s body cast, then sculpted the details using jewelers techniques with wax. With the wax sculpts, he produced test castings in resin and finally in red-colored urethane. The bikini brassiere is the early version crafted of rigid resin and is production used, as evidenced by eye hook on-set repair and glue residue on the interior surface from attempts to add material to make it more comfortable for Fisher.“

In recent years, Leia’s outfit has become a hot-button issue, with people forgetting the context of why she was in it. Even Fisher herself has spoken out against the character being in the bikini. In fact, the depiction of Slave Leia was censored by Disney.

However, regardless of what some loud tourists think, the ensemble that Jabba makes the Princess wear has endured through the decades. It’s pretty common to see cosplayers going as Slave Leia, and honestly, it’s the highlight of my day when covering conventions.

[Source: Heritage Auctions]