"Somehow, Palpatine returned." This iconic Star Wars meme has become the ultimate satire mocking the Emperor's controversial resurrection in The Rise of Skywalker. Many fans criticized the decision to revive Palpatine through cloning after his climactic demise in the beloved Return of the Jedi. But what did Ian McDiarmid, the actor who's portrayed Palpatine for four decades, think about the fan backlash?
During a Variety interview celebrating Revenge of the Sith's theatrical re-release (which became a box office success), McDiarmid dismissed critics, stating "mine and Palpatine's logic was completely sound."
"It was completely plausible that Palpatine would have a backup plan," he explained. "Despite being severely damaged, he'd find a way to reconstruct himself. When I discovered I'd get a floating astral throne, that was the icing on the cake. Having four people maneuver me around the set was pure joy - Daisy Ridley found it more unsettling than anything else. Then we developed an even more twisted makeup look than before."
Addressing the controversy directly, McDiarmid remarked: "There's always criticism, isn't there? I avoid reading online reactions unless someone mentions them. I anticipated some debate about his return, but fundamentally, our reasoning made complete sense. This brutally injured man always planned for contingencies. I loved portraying his comeback with amplified power - though this time, his destruction had to be absolute. I believe he's truly finished now."
The Rise of Skywalker offered minimal explanation for Palpatine's return. When Kylo Ren encounters him, the Emperor appears as a reanimated corpse, suggesting he didn't actually survive his fall in Return of the Jedi.
Yet death proved merely a temporary setback. As McDiarmid noted, the Emperor had prepared contingencies. The film vaguely attributes his resurrection to dark side powers, best summarized by Palpatine's meme-worthy line from Revenge of the Sith: "The Dark Side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities some consider... unnatural."
In other words: ancient Sith sorcery did the trick.
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The Star Wars fanbase likely won't ever fully embrace Palpatine's return in The Rise of Skywalker, with many preferring to pretend it never occurred. It remains to be seen whether future Star Wars films will acknowledge these events. Recent reports indicate Daisy Ridley's Rey Skywalker will appear in multiple upcoming films as the franchise's "most valuable cinematic asset."
Ridley is confirmed to reprise her role in Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy's sequel, set approximately 15 years after The Rise of Skywalker, which will follow Rey's efforts to reestablish the Jedi Order.
