Star Wars Abandoned Their Emperor Palpatine Disney+ Return Plans

by

The possibility of Emperor Palpatine, famously portrayed by Ian McDiarmid and known as both Emperor Palpatine and Darth Sidious, making a comeback was discussed for a live-action Star Wars series on Disney+. The character was the ominous force and main antagonist throughout the entire Skywalker Saga. Despite his death in Return of the Jedi when Darth Vader sacrificed himself, Palpatine reappeared in 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker. It was later revealed that instead of perishing as a result of his destruction aboard the second Death Star, Palpatine returned through cloning.

In more casual and readable language, the character Palpatine made a comeback in recent years, appearing in the show “The Bad Batch,” where we learned more about Project Necromancer and the Empire’s cloning projects that eventually brought back the Sith Lord. Interestingly, Palpatine even popped up on Disney+ in live-action previously, though as a hologram, with actor McDiarmid reprising his role to torment Darth Vader when he couldn’t defeat his old Jedi master, Obi-Wan Kenobi.

In simpler terms, Dan Gilroy, a screenwriter known for his work on Andor, recently shared some insights with Script Apart about the initial plan for the Disney+ series to span over five seasons, culminating in events similar to Rogue One. However, this plan was later shortened to just two seasons. If the show had continued as initially intended, there could have been a possibility of Emperor Palpatine making an appearance on the Disney+ series.

Gilroy expressed that it was hard for him to conceive that, within a span of five years, they hadn’t yet revealed the “Emperor” and delved deeper into realms of authority.

Over a five-year period, it seems unlikely that we wouldn’t have encountered the Emperor by then. I believe our investigation would have led us closer to his world. Instead of just understanding the opposition forces, I feel we would have delved further into the current power structures, specifically focusing on the heart of power – the corridors of power. It feels logical that we would have ventured deeper into these corridors of power and examined them more thoroughly. This seems like the natural progression of our investigation.

According to Tony Gilroy’s conversation with Rolling Stone, he felt that introducing the Emperor character was too substantial for him, although he had considered the idea.

Introducing him would have been more than I could handle due to his size. The task seemed overwhelmingly difficult. At one time, I considered taking it on, but ultimately found it to be beyond my capabilities.

In the final arc of Season 2, although not physically present, the Emperor played a covert role in Andor through a flashback showing Luthen’s initial act of rebellion. This rebellious act occurred on Naboo, his homeworld, which was strategically chosen by Luthen to directly antagonize the Emperor, as Tom Bissell, the writer, puts it, “to give the guy he despises most a good jab in the eye.

Andor Could Have Given Star Wars Its Best Emperor Yet

In the narrative of the political thriller series within the universe of Andor, involving the Jedi and Sith might have complicated the waters of what is arguably one of Star Wars’ most compelling narratives. This could potentially distract from its deeply human-centered storyline.

If Emperor Palpatine were to make an appearance in the series “Andor“, it might have altered his Sith background to delve into another facet of the cosmic antagonist. Rather than presenting the character as a lightning-wielding, Jedi-defaming villain, “Andor ” could have offered insights into Palpatine as a skilled politician and galactic autocrat instead.

Although it seemed prudent to maintain a focused narrative for the series Andor, an alternative approach might have delved into the public perception of Palpatine, providing insights on how this galactic dictator was perceived by ordinary citizens rather than just those wielding lethal technology.

At present, there are no confirmed future appearances of the Emperor scheduled. However, given that Darth Maul is set to star in his own Disney+ series next year, it’s plausible that his previous mentor might make an appearance in some capacity within the show titled “Maul: Shadow Lord“.

Read More

2025-08-29 17:35