Hint #1 reminder: The meta answer has 6 letters in the first word and 8 letters in the second word
Hint #2: The central clue hints at "Royals"... maybe the starred clues are somehow connected?
Hint #3: The starred clues are all associated with the word "princess"
Hint #4: Isn't 12A such an odd way to clue Leia? Why wouldn't you clue it with a Star Wars reference? oh wait a minute...
Hint #5: Each of the 6 starred "princess" entries can match up with a clue elsewhere in the puzzle... Read out the first letter of the corresponding entries for those clues in grid order (from top to bottom)