Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Novel Teases the Potential Return of Palpatine

Rey (Daisy Ridley) might have won the battle against Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) and the Sith in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, however, the novelization of the film seems to tease the potential return of Star Wars greatest villain.

Adding to the growing number of contentious details that The Rise of Skywalker novel has added to the film, a passage from Rae Carson's The Rise of Skywalker: Expanded Edition reveals the potential return of Darth Sidious (via NME). In the last few chapters of the book, readers find Poe Dameron speaking with Finn about Palpatine's return.

Poe reminds Finn how Leia once believed that the Rebellion had put an end to Emperor Palpatine's rule at the Battle of Endor, however, the Sith Lord managed to return more powerful than ever.

"You think he might come back again," Finn said.

"Maybe. Or some other evil will rise. Evil always rises."

"Naw," said Finn. "Not for a long time, anyway."

While the passage may simply be a speculative conversation between Finn and Poe, some suspect that the dialogue teases the return of Palpatine. Star Wars fans didn't really expect Palpatine to fully return in The Rise of Skywalker, and yet, J.J. Abrams managed to bring Darth Sidious back to life. The book also revealed that Palpatine managed to return by cloning himself – what's stopping the Emperor from cloning himself again and wrecking havoc on the galaxy far, far away in another future trilogy?

Having Palpatine return for a second time around might sound a tad bit exhausting, but we can't really dismiss the fact that the book seems to be teasing that sort of possibility. Let's cross our fingers and hope that Star Wars finally moves on to a new narrative instead of recycling the same old story.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is available on Digital HD. The film is set for release on Blu-Ray, DVD, and 4K UHD on March 31, 2020.

Read: Disney Reportedly Asking Disney+ Subscribers If They'd Want More Whedon Content