J.J. Abrams, the director of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, reportedly wanted to bring back Palpatine during The Force Awakens.
In recent days, we have received more clarification about how Emperor Palpatine returned during the events of The Rise of Skywalker. Thanks to the official novelization and actor Ian McDiarmid, we now that Palpatine’s body was a clone, struggling to contain his immense dark side spirit.
But how far back did these plans go for director J.J. Abrams? Well, according to visual effects supervisor Roger Guyett, it was all the way back with Episode VII. Guyett spoke to Cinefex about how J.J. originally wanted to bring Palpatine back during Star Wars: The Force Awakens:
“[Actor] Ian [McDiarmid] was such a major part of the original films. J.J. wanted to bring him back to reveal that Palpatine wasn’t completely destroyed in [The Force Awakens]. He created a clone of himself and, with the help of Sith loyalists, rebuilt himself to a fragmented and unstable state. When Kylo meets him, Palpatine is not fully formed, and he relies on tubes and mechanics, moving around this Sith laboratory on a mechanism that Kevin Jenkins designed. He has the spirit of the Sith, but he’s trapped inside a body that’s incomplete.”
SEE ALSO: Ian McDiarmid on Palpatine being a clone in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
So, now we have even more details about Palpatine’s state during Episode IX. Would you have liked to have seen Sidious return during The Force Awakens? Let us know in the comments below and on our social media @flickeringmyth…
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker sees J.J. Abrams (Star Wars: The Force Awakens) directing a cast that includes Star Wars veterans Daisy Ridley (Rey), Adam Driver (Kylo Ren), John Boyega (Finn), Oscar Isaac (Poe Dameron), Lupita Nyong’o (Maz Kanata), Domhnall Gleeson (General Hux), Kelly Marie Tran (Rose Tico), Joonas Suotamo (Chewbacca), Billie Lourd (Lieutenant Connix), Greg Grunberg (Snap Wexley), Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Billy Dee Williams (Lando Calrissian), Ian McDiarmid (Emperor Palpatine) and Carrie Fisher (Leia Organa) as well as new additions Naomi Ackie (Lady Macbeth), Richard E. Grant (Logan), Dominic Monaghan (Lost), and Keri Russell (The Americans).
