The scion of an aristocratic family on Naboo, Palpatine first turns toward the dark side upon meeting the titular Sith lord. Droga flees to a secret Imperial base on the planet Byss, where the Emperor's advisor Sate Pestage exorcises Palpatine's spirit and channels it into one of many clones created by Palpatine before his death. Unable to bear the sight of his son in pain, Vader throws the Emperor into the Death Star’s reactor, killing him.

It is suggested at the end of the series that Palpatine manipulated the Force to impregnate Vader's mother Shmi Skywalker, making him in essence Vader's father—although this is left somewhat ambiguous. "I thought I was dead – no, I thought he was dead," McDiarmid laughed. The character is briefly mentioned in Star Wars (1977), the first film in the original trilogy, which was later subtitled Episode IV – A New Hope. The story takes an Imperial perspective, following an elite squadron known as Inferno Squad, led by protagonist Iden Versio, as they help to execute Operation: Cinder following the Emperor’s death. [6] The Lucasfilm Story Group approached Del Rey Books and asked if they wanted to use the name, which was created by George Lucas, in the Tarkin novel, to which Del Rey agreed.[88]. [52], Star Wars Battlefront II adds a canonical tale spanning the destruction of the second Death Star through the events of The Force Awakens. [19] This builds on the plot point of Anakin's virgin birth introduced in The Phantom Menace, and the claim that a Sith lord "could use the Force to influence the midi-chlorians to create life," as Palpatine tells Anakin in Revenge of the Sith. ... For in his heart he judged the universe on his own terms, with a clear sense of right and wrong. [105] The makeup was sculpted by Phil Tippett and applied by Rick Baker,[2] who initially used his own wife, Elaine, for the makeup tests. So we see the trappings of power. The Star Wars Databank describes him as "the supreme ruler of the most powerful tyrannical regime the galaxy had ever witnessed" and Stephen J. Sansweet's Star Wars Encyclopedia calls him "evil incarnate". [10][26] He then unveils the Final Order, a massive fleet of superlaser-equipped Star Destroyers. The operation was part of the "Contingency", a plan devised by Emperor Palpatine to ensure that the Empire and its enemies would not outlive him should he perish. [44], Star Wars: Lords of the Sith (2015) was one of the first canon spin-off novels to be released in the Disney canon begun in 2014. So I had this microphone that we called the "God mic." In the episodes "Wolves and a Door" and "A World Between Worlds", he appears as a hologram overseeing the excavation of the Lothal Jedi Temple, which contains a portal to a separate dimension of the Force outside of space and time, which Palpatine considers a 'conduit between the living and the dead' that could give him unrivaled power of the Force itself if he can access it.

This prompts First Order leader and fallen Jedi Kylo Ren (Adam Driver)—the grandson of Anakin and nephew of Luke—to seek him out on the Sith planet Exegol, where a physically impaired Palpatine is kept alive by machinery. When Vader brings Luke before his master, the Emperor tempts Luke to join the dark side by appealing to the young Jedi's fear for his friends, whom he has lured into a trap. [48] The dark side was thought to be concentrated in this region, where one Sith cultist believed that Palpatine would be found alive. Palpatine's role in the prequel films required McDiarmid to play two dimensions of the same character. "And [George] said, 'No, he's dead' so I just accepted that, but then of course I didn't know I was going to be doing the prequels," he added. In April 2014, Lucasfilm rebranded most of the licensed Star Wars novels and comics produced since the originating 1977 film Star Wars as Star Wars Legends and declared them non-canon to the franchise. Palpatine sees this as an opportunity to seek out other remaining Jedi, ordering Vader to dispatch an Inquisitor to hunt down Ahsoka.

[89] However, by the time of Return of the Jedi and its novelization, Palpatine was made the name of the current emperor.[42]. [76], As a senator, Palpatine is "unassuming, yet ambitious".

Palpatine is last seen watching the original Death Star's construction, with Vader and Wilhuff Tarkin (Wayne Pygram) at his side. "[78] A Visual Dictionary states that he is a self-proclaimed savior. The Emperor first appears (in hologram form) in The Empire Strikes Back, the 1980 sequel to the original film, to address Vader, informing him that Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) has become a threat to the Empire. And while Palpatine's body might not be what it was, McDiarmid teased that his mind is "even sharper". [16] Queen Padmé Amidala of Naboo (Natalie Portman) flees to the planet Coruscant to receive counsel from Palpatine, unaware that he actually engineered the invasion. [94][g] Lucas said that Nixon's presidency "got me to thinking historically about how do democracies get turned into dictatorships. [27][28] He orders Rey to kill him in anger for his spirit to pass into her. Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi, Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace, Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker, Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones: Deleted Scenes, Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones, Fyodor Dostoyevsky's 'Crime and Punishment', Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back, Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse, Full Commentary on 'Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker', Live from the Red Carpet of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Star Wars: Evolution of the Lightsaber Duel, It's All for Real: The Stunts of Episode III, Refuse to Dance: The Theatre of Howard Barker, How to Watch Star Wars, Part One: The Prequels Are Better Movies Than You Deserve, Vegan Gains Joins Us - Prank Calls to Caiden Cowger - Opening Fan Mail. [e] This would seem to have incestuous implications for Rey and Ben Solo at the end of The Rise of Skywalker,[50][f] but Soule says that "The Dark Side is not a reliable narrator," and a Lucasfilm story group member who collaborated on the comic confirms that a direct connection between Palpatine and Vader was not their intent.