Star Wars Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith is heading back to theaters for a limited re-release to celebrate the film's 20th anniversary and actor Ian McDiarmid sat down to speak with Variety about his iconic portrayal of The Emperor throughout the franchise. During their interview McDiarmid reveals at one point there was a TV series being considered which would have explored more of Palpatine's past and the story of Darth Plaguise The Wise, whome Palpatine admitted to murdering during his pivotal conversation with Anakin Skywalker in Episode 3.
There was, at some point, supposed to be a series based around Palpatine. Was any of that backstory shared with you as part of the character’s mythology?
Just the story of Darth Plagueis the Wise. It’s fairly obvious that my character murdered Plagueis on his road to becoming Palpatine. But beyond that, no. With George, you didn’t discuss anything really. You turn up and you shoot. These films take a long time to make and the pressure is intense for many reasons; of course, George was at the forefront of all of that. So he had all of that to think about day by day. He takes a good deal of trouble over casting; but, once he’s cast, then he likes the actors to get on with it.
The story of Darth Plagueis has been one fans have speculated on and wanted to flesh out for some time now and prior to its canceling, it seemed like we might actually get some exploration of that Sith history. In the series finale for the The Acolyte, we got a glimpse of an alien character emerging from a dark cave to watch a ship departing - fans unanimously have agreed this character is undoubtedly the elusive Darth Plagueis.
However, The Acolyte was canceled, so any hopes of seeing the character return for a second season are pretty much nonexistent now. That's not to say the story of Darth Plagueis and Palpatine's rise to power within the Sith practice won't be explored in another project.
With so much of the lore left untapped, it's very likely we'll get a series or film exploring the Palpatine backstory at some point.
Be sure to catch Star Wars Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith in theaters again now for a limited time!
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