"Somehow, Palpatine returned." This Star Wars meme has become a cultural phenomenon, often used to poke fun at the Emperor's controversial return in The Rise of Skywalker. Despite the negative reactions from many fans regarding Palpatine's resurrection through cloning after his supposed demise in Return of the Jedi, Ian McDiarmid, the actor behind Palpatine for over 40 years, shared his thoughts on the backlash in an interview with Variety.
The interview coincided with the re-release of Revenge of the Sith to theaters, which enjoyed significant box office success. McDiarmid dismissed the criticism, stating, “mine and Palpatine’s logic was entirely reasonable.” He elaborated on Palpatine's contingency plan, saying, "It seemed entirely probable that Palpatine had plan B. Even though he was very, very badly damaged, he would be able to put it together in some form. When I realized I had a sort of astral wheelchair, that was even better. I just had these four guys who whisked me around the studio; I can’t tell you how much fun that was. Daisy was more worried about that than anything else. And then, of course, we had to devise another makeup look, which was even more grotesque than the previous one."
Addressing the backlash directly, McDiarmid remarked, "Well, there’s always something, isn’t there? I don’t read that stuff and I’m not online. So it’ll only reach me if someone mentions it. I thought there might be a bit of a fuss about bringing him back. But as I said, mine and Palpatine’s logic was entirely reasonable. This man who was horribly maimed thought maybe one day it might happen to him, and we’ve got to have a plan B. I loved the whole idea that he should come back and be even more powerful than he was before. Though this time, he had to be utterly destroyed. So I think he’s dead."
The Rise of Skywalker offers a vague explanation of how Palpatine managed his return. When Kylo Ren encounters him early in the film, Palpatine appears as a reanimated version of his former self, suggesting he did not survive his fall at the end of Return of the Jedi. However, as McDiarmid pointed out, Palpatine had a backup plan in place. During his monologue to Kylo Ren, Palpatine references his words from Revenge of the Sith: "The Dark Side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities that some would consider to be... unnatural." This hints at ancient Sith magic being the key to his resurrection.
It's doubtful that the core Star Wars fanbase will ever fully embrace Palpatine's return in The Rise of Skywalker, with many preferring to ignore it altogether. It remains to be seen how future Star Wars films will handle this plot point. Daisy Ridley's character, Rey Skywalker, is set to appear in multiple upcoming films, having been identified as the franchise's "most valuable cinematic asset." Ridley will reprise her role in a sequel directed by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, which will explore Rey's efforts to rebuild the Jedi Order 15 years after the events of The Rise of Skywalker.
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