For all the newStar Warscontent being put out by Disney, fans sure do love arguing about events taking place in the first six movies. One of those debates involves Emperor Palpatine actor Ian McDiarmid and what really happened in Darth Sidious’ office on that ill-fated night.
McDiarmid first landed the Darth Sidious role in the ’80s when he was cast as The Emperor inStar Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi, which led to him becoming an essential part of the Prequel Trilogy, as well as making a more controversial appearance inThe Rise of Skywalker. Regardless of that, the Scottish actor and his iconic villains are still beloved byStar Warsfandom, which is why it was so interesting to hear his take on a defining moment for the franchise.
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This took place during 2022’sStar Wars Celebrationevent, wheretheAndorteaser was revealed, and the actor jumped on stage to answer a few questions. One fan asked whether his character threw the fight against Mace Windu or if Jedi Master Samuel L. Jackson had truly bested him. With regard to that, McDiarmid understands the contention about the matter, saying, “George thought about doing it a number of ways… He wanted to compromise Anakin in another way, which he did, and destroy Mace at the same time.” That just happened to call for Palpatine to feign defeat.
On this same occasion, McDiarmid also cleared any doubts that the disfigured face from Return of the Jedi is Darth Sidious’ true visage. McDiarmid claimed that George Lucas told him he “should think of [his] face as a mask” that comes off when he’s struck though not truly harmed by Mace Windu. Finally, McDiarmid also mentioned his favorite scene inStar Warsis the one where Palpatine starts to win over a young Anakin Skywalker by telling the story of Darth Plagueis the Wise, the one man in the galaxy known to beat death. Well, besides Palpatine himself a few years later.
McDiarmid’s voice still shows up sporadically inStar Warsproductions, as heard inObi-Wan Kenobiepisode 1, although with Disney making so much content nowadays some fans are hoping they can eventually see how a younger Darth Sidious rose to the senate or when he became a Sith Lord. Even so, the Emperor still has plenty of room to make appearances inThe Bad Batchor someObi-Wan Kenobiepisodes.
In any case,Palpatine is one of the most despicable villainsin film history, and to think the Emperor’s first appearance inThe Empire Strike Backwasn’t played by McDiarmid but by Marjorie Eaton instead.
