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Joely Fisher: I Knew Debbie Reynolds Wouldn't Survive If Carrie Didn't

Joely Fisher: I Knew Debbie Reynolds Wouldn't Survive If Carrie Didn't
Joely Fisher (right) spent time with Debbie Reynolds (left) in the hospital at Carrie Fisher's (center) bedside on Christmas.
Jeff Kravitz via Getty Images
Joely Fisher (right) spent time with Debbie Reynolds (left) in the hospital at Carrie Fisher's (center) bedside on Christmas.

Joely Fisher opened up about the heartbreaking last moments at her famous half-sister Carrie Fisher’s hospital bedside, revealing a hunch she had about the late actress’ mother, Debbie Reynolds.

“I knew that if Carrie wasn’t going to survive this that Debbie would not,” she said in an interview with ABC News this week. “She would not last without her on the planet. She wouldn’t, and she didn’t.”

The “Star Wars” heroine died on Dec. 27, 2016, days after suffering a heart attack onboard a flight bound for Los Angeles. Reynolds, a Hollywood icon, died just one day later following a stroke.

“I’ve been having an out-of-body experience,” Joely said about the tragic loss. “The world lost Carrie and Debbie ... and we lost our hero.”

Joely and her younger sister, Tricia, share a father, Eddie, with their well-known older half-sister. The two women told ABC’s Chris Connelly that Carrie was extremely generous and sensitive.

“She was the coolest big sister in the world,” Tricia, 48, said. “She was a badass body gun-toting princess. Who has that?”

Joely Fisher (right) spent time with Debbie Reynolds (left) in the hospital at Carrie Fisher's (center) bedside on Christmas.
Jeff Kravitz via Getty Images
Joely Fisher (right) spent time with Debbie Reynolds (left) in the hospital at Carrie Fisher's (center) bedside on Christmas.

Joely says she shared a final conversation with her late half-sister via text message the night before Carrie boarded the flight where she would suffer a fateful heart attack.

“We talked about age because she was floored that she just turned 60. We talked about children. We talked about our frail mothers,” Joely, 49, said. “And I promised to see her for Christmas.”

Joely kept her promise, though under tragic circumstances. She visited the beloved actress and mental health advocate in the hospital over the holiday.

“I remember just holding [Carrie’s] hand and telling her that we were there,” Joely said. “That we would make sure that her daughter was whole, which she will be.”

Joely described Carrie’s 24-year-old daughter Billie Lourd as “soulful” and “smart.”

“She was obviously rattled to the core,” Tricia said of Lourd. “But she’s handling it.”

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