Darth Vader’s iconic black helmet is without a doubt one of the hallmarks of Star Wars.
With its signature breathing apparatus – which was the catalyst for James Earl Jones’ rasping performance – it’s something of a monolithic symbol from the era of the Galactic Empire, a time when Vader and Grand Moff Tarkin ruled over the galaxy with an iron fist.
Fast forward to the Sequel Trilogy, though, and that iconic accessory has been reduced to a charred pile of ash, one which we saw smashed into a million little pieces on that recent (and really rather stunning) poster for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. But it turns out that the film will have more connections to Vader than just his helmet, as a new TV spot has surfaced today which actually lets us hear some new dialogue from the big bad, with James Earl Jones back in the role.
That’s right, for a brief couple of seconds, we hear the legendary actor as Darth Vader speaking to Adam Driver’s Kylo Ren. We don’t see him in the flesh though, as this just appears to be Emperor Palpatine taunting Kylo and getting inside his head. But still, it’s a pretty surprising moment and one that’ll send fans into a frenzy.
While the implication here appears to be that the Emperor has been the one stringing Ren along all this time, this sequence really just leaves us with more questions than it answers. But again, it’s incredibly tantalizing and as the single most revealing piece of footage we’ve seen yet, it’ll no doubt get folks talking.
Thankfully, then, we’ll finally get some clarity on everything in just over a week. That’s right;Â Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker has been cleared for take-off and will land in the United States on December 20th, a mere 24 hours after it premieres in the UK. Don’t miss it.
