Carrie Fisher, best know for her role as Princess Leia in Star Wars, has died at the age of 60.
Just days ago, she suffered a heart attack while on a flight from London to Los Angeles.
A family statement issued this evening on behalf of Ms Fisher's daughter, Billie Lourd, confirmed that the star had died this morning, Tuesday.
"It is with a very deep sadness that Billie Lourd confirms that her beloved mother Carrie Fisher passed away at 8.55 this morning.
"She was loved by the world and she will be missed profoundly. Our entire family thanks you for your thoughts and prayers."
As well as starring in other hits such as The Blues Brothers and When Harry Met Sally, Fisher also wrote four novels.
She was just 19 when she shot to fame via Star Wars. As the daughter of singer Eddie Fisher and actress Debbie Reynolds, Carrie spent a lifetime in the spotlight.
When she was just two, her father left her mother for Elizabeth Taylor - also her mother's close friend.
In an autobiography published earlier this year, Carrie claimed for the first time that she had a three-month long affair with a married Harrison Ford during the filming of Star Wars.
Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher dies aged 60 after heart attack https://t.co/KDYfSbBUUL
— Sky News (@SkyNews) December 27, 2016
On December 23 Ms Fisher suffered a cardiac arrest on a flight from London to LA.
It was later reported that she had stopped breathing and that a fellow passenger had to perform CPR on her.
She has spent the last few days in intensive care at the UCLA Medical Center.
