Ian McDiarmid Backs Palpatine's Return in The Rise of Skywalker

"Somehow, Palpatine returned." This iconic Star Wars line has become the ultimate meme, often used to mock the Emperor's controversial comeback in The Rise of Skywalker. Many fans were displeased with Palpatine's resurrection via cloning, following his apparent demise in the beloved Return of the Jedi. But what does Ian McDiarmid, the actor who has portrayed Palpatine and the Emperor for over four decades, think about the criticism?

In a Variety interview celebrating the theatrical re-release of Revenge of the Sith (a reissue that, by the way, has been a massive box office success), McDiarmid dismissed the backlash, stating that "both my own and Palpatine's reasoning was completely sound."

"It seemed entirely plausible that Palpatine would have a backup plan," he explained. "Even though he was severely injured, he would find a way to reassemble himself in some form. When I discovered I had a kind of astral wheelchair, that made it even better. I had these four crew members who wheeled me around the studio—I can't express how much fun that was. Daisy Ridley was more concerned about that than anything else. And then we had to design a new makeup look, which was even more grotesque than before."

McDiarmid added, specifically addressing the negative reaction to the Emperor's return: "Well, there's always some controversy, isn't there?" he remarked. "I don't read that kind of feedback, and I'm not active online. So I only hear about it if someone brings it up. I expected there might be some uproar about his return. But as I said, the logic behind it, for both me and Palpatine, was perfectly reasonable. This was a man who was terribly wounded and considered that such a thing might happen one day, so of course he would have a contingency plan. I loved the concept of him returning even more powerful than he was before. Though this time, he had to be completely obliterated. So I believe he is truly gone."

The Rise of Skywalker offers a vague explanation for Palpatine's dramatic return. When Kylo Ren discovers him early in the film, Emperor Palpatine appears as a reanimated corpse. This suggests that he did not actually survive his fall at the end of Return of the Jedi.

However, his death did little to hinder him. As McDiarmid noted, Palpatine had a contingency plan ready for such an event. In the film's ambiguous account of his resurrection, Sheev quotes his famously memed line from Revenge of the Sith during his villainous monologue, where he unveils his outrageous scheme to Kylo Ren: "The Dark Side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be... unnatural."

So, the answer is ancient Sith magic. That's how he achieved it.

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It seems unlikely that the core Star Wars fanbase will ever fully accept Palpatine's return in The Rise of Skywalker, and many would prefer to simply ignore it. It will be intriguing to see whether future Star Wars films follow suit. In November, it was reported that Daisy Ridley's character, Rey Skywalker, is set to appear in several upcoming Star Wars movies, as she is considered the galaxy's "most valuable cinematic asset."

Ridley has already been confirmed to reprise her role in the Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy-directed sequel to The Rise of Skywalker. The story will follow Rey as she aims to rebuild the Jedi Order approximately 15 years after the events of the previous film.