When the first trailer for “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” debuted, the one thing that kept people talking for weeks to follow is the laugh at the end of the footage. The cackle is unmistakably that of the evil Emperor Palpatine that was featured heavily in the George Lucas’ previous films. And while the hint that Palpatine might come back from the dead made some fans excited, others were worried.
Now, speaking to Empire (via /Film), ‘Rise of Skywalker’ director JJ Abrams discusses the reason why he wanted to include Palpatine in the new film, despite the fact that many fans want him to stay dead.
“Some people feel like we shouldn’t revisit the idea of Palpatine, and I completely understand that,” explained Abrams. “But if you’re looking at these nine films as one story, I don’t know many books where the last few chapters have nothing to do with those that have come before. If you look at the first eight films, all the set-ups of what we’re doing in ‘IX’ are there in plain view.”
You really can’t argue with the director’s logic. The idea that something from earlier in the story comes back to haunt characters later in the finale is storytelling 101. But of course, that’s over the course of chapters of a book or episodes of a TV series. Films are films, right? And in the case of franchise films, there are many that just want each entry to stand on its own and not be so beholden to the past.
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However, this is 2019 and if Marvel Studios’ domination of the box office has told us anything, it’s that nostalgia equals dollar signs. And even if there’s no obvious way to bring back a dead character, you still have to pull out all the stops and find a way to tie everything up in the finale. Hell, it worked for Marvel Studios and “Avengers: Endgame.” So, you better believe Disney wants Lucasfilm to do the same with the latest Star War.
“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” arrives on December 20.
