“Somehow Palpatine returned.” Those words from Poe Dameron in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker may live in infamy online, but the fact of the matter is it was impressive that the former leader of the Galactic Empire survived that fall in Return of the Jedi. Palpatine resurfaced in the final Skywalker Saga movie as the puppet master behind the events of the Sequel Trilogy, although he was looking worse for wear. The Rise of Skywalker never explicitly stated why Palpatine was in such a weakened state, but now that answer has finally been revealed, and Darth Vader factors into it.
In the six years since The Rise of Skywalker was released in theaters, fans have learned from hints in the movie and information shared in the novelization and some other Star Wars books, that Palpatine transferred his consciousness to a new body when Darth Vader tossed him into that chasm in the second Death Star. However, the new body failed to be a suitable replacement, and he spent the next three decades overseeing cloning experiments to try and create a better one. But on top of that, the new book Star Wars: Master of Evil (via SFFGazette) has indicated that Vader’s absence also negatively affected Palpatine, per this excerpt:
The power of the dark side is the truth, but it is not a truth to be shared. Its secrets are to be gathered, hoarded, kept for the self. That is how it is meant to be. The master’s strength and power come from the anger and fear of his apprentice. The master uses that power, absorbing the resentment, fueling the fire, focusing his power and his grip on the dark side. It is the apprentice that makes the master, not the master the apprentice.
For those who haven’t heard of Star Wars: Master of Evil until now, this book, written by Shadow of the Sith’s Adam Christopher, follows Darth Vader shortly after Revenge of the Sith as he embarks on a journey to understand a Force vision he witnesses while forging his red lightsaber. Meaning, the events of this book take place well over 50 years before The Rise of Skywalker. So obviously the above excerpt isn’t directly referencing what will happen to Palpatine post-Original Trilogy.
That said, this new piece of lore would suggest that because Vader wasn’t around when Palpatine put himself in that new body, the Emperor wasn’t able to feed off his apprentice’s power to increase his own. The Rule of Two kept the Sith alive and hidden from the Jedi Order for a millennia, but once that was fractured by Vader rebelling against Palpatine to save Luke Skywalker, Palpatine was stuck as a shell of his former self and forced to create Snoke as his proxy for The First Order. At least when Maul and Dooku died, the man we also know as Darth Sidious had replacements immediately lined up, allowing him to retain his stronger connection to the Dark Side.
Ironically, Palpatine’s attempts to clone a perfect clone body ended up being his downfall. One of those clones went on to become Rey’s father, and Palpatine initially intended to transfer his consciousness into his granddaughter’s body. Then when he sensed the dyad between her and Ben Solo, he started to absorb their life force to rejuvenate his own body. Fortunately, Rey finally destroyed her grandfather when she successfully deflected the Force lightning he attacked her with right back at him, and hopefully he’ll stay dead this time.
You can see what else Star Wars: Master of Evil has to offer by grabbing a copy wherever you purchase books. Otherwise, remember that you can stream the Star Wars movies and TV shows with a Disney+ subscription, and the franchise is finally returning to theaters with the release of The Mandalorian & Grogu on the 2026 movies schedule next May.