Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
Entertainment
Christi Carras

How Billie Lourd’s wedding honored mom Carrie Fisher and grandma Debbie Reynolds

Billie Lourd’s wedding to fellow actor Austen Rydell was officiated by two important figures in her life: Gavin DeBecker and Bruce Wagner, best friends of late movie star Carrie Fisher.

Their key role in Lourd and Rydell’s nuptials — which took place over the weekend in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico — was just one of several ways the “Booksmart” star paid tribute to her mother, Fisher, and grandmother, silver screen icon Debbie Reynolds.

“Star Wars” legend Fisher died at age 60 on Dec. 27, 2016, immediately followed by the death of “Singin’ in the Rain” star Reynolds on Dec. 28 at age 84.

“It was the most hysterically brilliant and touching officiating in the history of officiating,” Lourd recently told Vogue magazine.

“And in true Carrie fashion, we threw glitter in the air at the end of the ceremony. It was magical. I could not have dreamed up a more perfect wedding.”

According to Vogue, Lourd also honored Fisher by wearing something old: her engagement ring — which contains a diamond from her mother’s engagement ring; something borrowed: a different ring Fisher gave to a friend; and something blue: Fisher’s favorite fire opal ring.

Even the “American Horror Story” player’s wedding dress — a custom white, off-the-shoulder Rodarte gown — was designed by two people Lourd found through her mother: Rodarte’s Kate and Laura Mulleavy.

“I discovered Kate and Laura after they interviewed my mom for an article in 2014 and immediately fell in love,” Lourd told Vogue.

To complete her look, the bride also paid homage to Fisher with her custom Rene Mancini shoes, which her father Eddie Fisher stumbled upon and recognized. By then, however, the wedding was only a month out, and Lourd was told the footwear would take four months to make.

Luckily, the manager of the store was able to make an exception for the family with a special connection to the shoe.

“They reminded [my dad] of the shoes my mom used to wear in the ’90s,” Lourd told Vogue. “When he came to pick up the shoes, it turned out my dad’s hunch about my mom was right. [The manager] Mohamad told him that my mom used to shop at their store in New York City in the ’90s. The perfect shoe turned out to literally be the perfect shoe. It was serendipity!”

During the reception, Lourd saluted Reynolds with a sparkly, fringe-tastic mini-dress — also from Rodarte — that the newlywed vowed to turn “into an art piece ... because it’s way too legendary to just hang on a hanger in a closet.”

“It was inspired by my glam-ma Debbie Reynolds’s iconic dance outfits that she used to wear in all of her shows and is probably the most fun party outfit of all time,” Lourd told the magazine.

In 2020, Rydell proposed to Lourd after they had dated on and off since 2016. According to Vogue, their intimate wedding ceremony was attended only by relatives and close friends.

“We wrote our own vows and sobbed the entire time,” Lourd said. “Word to the wise—always wear waterproof everything!”

———

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.