Palpatine facts for kids
Palpatine (also known as the Emperor and Darth Sidious) is a character from the Star Wars universe. He is the main villain in the Star Wars movies.
His most famous power is Force lightning, which he uses to attack his enemies. This power was first seen in Return of the Jedi. Palpatine is played by Ian McDiarmid. He is considered the true villain of the Star Wars films because he tricked Anakin Skywalker into joining the Dark Side of the Force.
In Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Palpatine starts as a Senator from the planet Naboo. Secretly, he is also a powerful Sith Lord named Darth Sidious. Sidious secretly causes problems in the Galactic Senate to gain more power. His student at this time is Darth Maul, who is defeated by Obi-Wan Kenobi. By the end of Episode I, Palpatine becomes the Supreme Chancellor, beginning his rise to control the galaxy.
In Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, Palpatine secretly continues to push the galaxy towards a big war. He has a new student, Count Dooku, who leads the Separatist Droid Army and is known as Darth Tyrannus. Anakin Skywalker defeats Dooku in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith while rescuing the Chancellor.
Palpatine gained full control in Episode III. He ordered Anakin to attack the Jedi Temple and told the Clone Troopers to carry out Order 66, which meant destroying the Jedi. Palpatine fought Yoda in a big duel to decide the galaxy's future. He barely won against Yoda. After this, he created the first Galactic Empire from the fallen Republic. Palpatine ruled the galaxy with fear and was a very cruel leader, helped by his powerful enforcer, Darth Vader.
Palpatine ruled the galaxy for 23 years. In the end, he was killed by his own apprentice (student), Darth Vader.
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How Palpatine Was Played
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When the Emperor first appeared in The Empire Strikes Back, he was played by Marjorie Eaton with a lot of makeup. Chimpanzee eyes were added to his face later. His voice was done by Clive Revill.
To turn Ian McDiarmid into Emperor Palpatine in Return of the Jedi took a lot of makeup. McDiarmid said it took about two and a half hours to apply.
Palpatine's clothes in the prequel movies were important for showing his character changing. In Attack of the Clones, his costumes looked more powerful than when he was just a senator. In Revenge of the Sith, McDiarmid felt very strong wearing the costumes. His favorite costume looked like snake or lizard skin, which he thought was perfect for Palpatine. His costumes got darker and more decorated as he moved closer to the dark side.
In The Rise of Skywalker, Palpatine needs a large machine to move around. He has eyes without pupils and rotting hands. He wears a simple black robe for most of the movie. At the end, he uses the Force to become strong again and wears a new, fancy red velvet robe.
Palpatine in TV Shows
In the 2008 animated movie Star Wars: The Clone Wars and the TV series that followed, Palpatine is still the Supreme Chancellor. His secret Sith identity, Darth Sidious, is secretly planning the Clone Wars. Ian Abercrombie and later Tim Curry voiced Palpatine in these shows. Sidious causes problems between Jabba the Hutt and the Republic. Even though the Jedi stop the plot, it helps Palpatine because the Republic gains access to important space routes.
In Star Wars Rebels, which takes place between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, Palpatine is the Emperor of the Galactic Empire. He appears briefly, voiced by Sam Witwer and later Ian McDiarmid. Darth Vader tells Palpatine that the Rebel Alliance is active and that Ahsoka Tano is helping them. Palpatine sees this as a chance to find other Jedi.
Palpatine appears in season four of Star Wars Rebels, voiced by McDiarmid, and in the show's final episode.
He also appears in the 2021 animated series Star Wars: The Bad Batch. This show is set during and after Revenge of the Sith. The first episode shows Palpatine's speech from the movie, where he orders the Jedi to be destroyed and declares himself Emperor.
Palpatine is also in the 2022 series Obi-Wan Kenobi. This show is set ten years after Revenge of the Sith. After Darth Vader is beaten by Obi-Wan Kenobi, Palpatine talks to Vader through a hologram. He questions Vader's loyalty, but Vader promises to serve Palpatine and stops looking for Obi-Wan.
Darth Sidious also appears in an episode of the Tales of the Jedi TV series, talking with Darth Tyrannus.
Palpatine in Books and Comics
Palpatine first appeared in a Star Wars book in 1976. His past as a senator was explained in the book for Return of the Jedi.
In the book version of The Rise of Skywalker, it's said that Palpatine learned the "secret to immortality" from his old master, Darth Plagueis. This helped him survive after he died in Return of the Jedi. The book also says Palpatine's "son" was a failed clone of himself.
Star Wars: Lords of the Sith (2015) is a book where Vader and Palpatine are hunted by rebels on the planet Ryloth. In Thrawn (2017), Grand Admiral Thrawn warns Palpatine about dangers in unknown parts of the galaxy. The Aftermath book series shows that before he died, Palpatine planned for the rest of the Empire to go to these unknown regions. There, they formed the First Order.
Palpatine also appears often in the comic book series Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith (2017–2018). He also shows up in the comic book Star Wars: The Rise of Kylo Ren (2020), which explains how Palpatine tricked young Ben Solo into becoming Kylo Ren.
Video Games
Star Wars Battlefront II tells a story that happens after the second Death Star is destroyed. It follows an Imperial group called Inferno Squad as they carry out "Operation: Cinder" after the Emperor's death. This was a plan Palpatine made to destroy several Imperial planets if he died, to make sure no one could take over his Empire.
Palpatine's threat of revenge, mentioned in the opening of The Rise of Skywalker, was also part of a Fortnite: Battle Royale X Star Wars event. Palpatine has appeared in every Lego Star Wars video game, including Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga.
Images for kids
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Ian McDiarmid as Senator Palpatine in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999)
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The Emperor in the original 1980 version of The Empire Strikes Back played by Marjorie Eaton and voiced by Clive Revill
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U.S. President Richard Nixon helped inspire the Palpatine character
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Augustus in his robes as Pontifex Maximus
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A Star Wars fan dressed as Emperor Palpatine at a Star Wars Celebration event in 2015
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See also
In Spanish: Palpatine para niños
