“You can’t win, Vader. If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.”
That’s Obi-Wan Kenobi there, delivering a stark warning to Darth Vader as they cross lightsabers on board Death Star I. Remembering the wise words of Qui-Gon Jinn, Alec Guinness’ Jedi Master gracefully accepts defeat at the corrupt hands of Vader so that he can live on as a Force Ghost, schooling the young Luke Skywalker on the nuances of the Force.
It’s the closest thing to immortality one can achieve in the Star Wars universe, and the latest bout of rumors swirling around The Last Jedi point to the return of a series mainstay: Emperor Palpatine. Yes, the Sith Lord known as Darth Sidious, one responsible for the destruction of the Jedi Order, has been long rumored to make an appearance in Disney’s rebooted trilogy – not unlike how Darth Vader is linked with Ron Howard’s Han Solo movie – and Internet sleuth Mike Zeroh has compiled a new report claiming Palpatine will indeed appear in The Last Jedi. Albeit via hologram, hence the reference to Obi-Wan’s Force Ghost.
File this one in the rumor cabinet along with Zeroh’s other claims, but according to his findings, Snoke will summon a hologram of Palpatine so that Kylo Ren is further entrenched in the dark side of the Force.
A couple of months ago there was a big leak, a big rumour, that surfaced on the internet, that Supreme Leader Snoke owns a Palpatine hologram. [One] that he will actually show to Kylo Ren…so that Kylo Ren can actually understand his grandfather, Darth Vader, all the more in this film.
It’s admittedly a little out there; however, there is one thing that substantiates these claims, and that’s Disney’s recent Force Friday merchandise line. Keep in mind that Rian Johnson and Co. reportedly ran over said toy line with a fine-tooth comb in order to weed out any spoiler-sensitive material, but this pic does present some food for thought.
Until the second trailer zooms online (October 9th?), it’s all but certain that the Internet will continue to dredge up anything and everything relating to Star Wars: The Last Jedi, so tread lightly. Looking further afield, Rian Johnson’s sci-fi sequel will be with us on December 15th, and after politely declining the chance to helm Episode IX ahead of its launch in 2019, the Mouse House has handed the keys to the Falcon over to J.J. Abrams – much to the dismay of Paramount Pictures.
