The stunning new footage of Emperor Palpatine, or more correctly Darth Sidious, is sure to create a massive frenzy of speculation.
One of the biggest fan theories circulating is that Rey is somehow Palpatine’s heir, either through blood or through his manipulation of the Force, in the same way Anakin was created.
There have also been reports that The Last Jedi will feature a hologram recording of Palpatine in a scene with Snoke.
Nobody, however, has been considering that he might still actually be alive. Until now…
The Sith Lord was last seen plunging to his apparent death in the shaft of the Second Death Star. There was even an explosion and then the entire ship blew up soon afterwards.
How could anyone survive that?
Fans have speculated that he used the Force to stop his fall and somehow physically survived, but this seems unlikely. However, it is now canon that he had been preparing clones of himself to anticipate his own death.
Did he actually manage to transfer his consciousness and Force spirit into one of these in time? This new scene opens up some tantalising possibilities.
The scene is a promo release for the new EA game Star Wars Battlefront 2. These official products are canon.
The events take place in the past but crucially show scenes after the destruction of the Death Star as Palpatine appears before Admiral Versio and his daughter Iden.
The chilling incarnation of Palpatine is some sort of message that appears pre-recorded in the case of an emergency, but it also appears to identify the Admiral.
Clearly Palpatine set up numerous messages and messengers. It still seems unlikely that he will actually be fully alive by the time of The Last Jedi but Disney is clearly laying the ground for him to continue to participate in the wider Star Wars universe.
Perhaps the much-rumoured hologram scene with Snoke and Kylo Ren will feature another one of these interactions.
STAR WARS THE LAST JEDI IS OUT ON DECEMBER 14
Daily Express :: Entertainment Feed
