'Gentle, sweet, down-to-earth': Carrie Fisher praised by Star Wars co-star

Carrie Fisher has been praised as the "most gentle, sweet, down to earth" person.

Actress Maisie Richardson-Sellers had a small role as Korr Sella in 'Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens' and she revealed that Carrie - who died in 2016 - went out of her way to look after her on set.

She told The Hollywood Reporter: "My first ever on-camera experience was a scene with Carrie Fisher. I had no idea what I was doing. I had never been on a set before. It was an overwhelming but amazing baptism by fire. It turned what could have been a painful experience into a really positive one, a learning experience.

"She was the most gentle, sweet, down to earth. I walked on set and she just beamed at me and she said, 'We've got this'. I was like, 'This is my first time'. And she was just so kind and generous and just ended up making it into such a pleasurable experience, what could have been a really intimidating experience. And then afterwards, I went to her trailer to say thank you and she was like, 'Come in'. I sat with her, and we had a chat. And she was just so open and just so willing to share. I was there for two days. She didn't have to be like that with technically a day player."

And Maisie, 28, also praised J.J. Abrams for giving her a role in the movie after she initially auditioned for the lead.

She explained: "The first year was tough because I was so emotionally invested in everything that I tried out for. I did like six auditions for 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens', which was intense, and then obviously did not get the lead but still got another small part. J.J. Abrams was so sweet, so lovely to me and he gave me a part in the film."