Ian McDiarmid Defends Palpatine’s Return In Rise Of Skywalker: ‘He Always Had A Plan B’
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Here’s the thing about Emperor Palpatine: somehow, he always returns. First, Ian McDiarmid donned old-age makeup to play the role of Star Wars’ arch-villain in 1983’s Return Of The Jedi. Then, he returned 16 years later to play Palpatine again in the prequel trilogy – this time as the politician who would become the Emperor. And in 2019’s The Rise Of Skywalker, he came back one last time (well, for now) as the rotting, reincarnated ruler, ready to emerge from the shadows and execute his plan once and for all. Palpatine’s resurrection in Episode IX was a controversial point for some fans – not just since Luke and Vader vanquished the Emperor together at the end of the original trilogy, but because the galaxy’s age-old enemy hadn’t featured in the other sequel trilogy films.
But to McDiarmid himself, it makes sense. Speaking to Empire in a major new interview – celebrating 25 years of the Star Wars prequels – he shared his thoughts on Palpatine’s mysterious comeback. “A lot of people said it was ridiculous,” he says. “Of course, he was dead at the end of Return Of The Jedi! And frankly, I think George thought he’d killed me too. But J.J. thought it would be a good idea – I wasn’t going to argue with him.” Still, if there’s anyone who might be able to pull off a return from beyond the grave, it might just be Palpatine. “I felt that Palpatine always had a plan B – probably a plan C, D, E, and F as well,” McDiarmid reasons. “And he was an expert in cloning, so…”
By pulling the strings across all three Star Wars trilogies, he points out, Palpatine now stands as the ultimate cinematic villain. “The thing that I’m most pleased about, and you know, this only came to a head when they asked me to come back for The Rise Of Skywalker, is that every single evil act in all of the Star Wars franchise is either directly or indirectly down to that character,” says McDiarmid. “That is total evil, and that’s strangely satisfying as an arc. I do feel fortunate to have been able to do it – and other villains of cinema now have to compete with that.”