When the return of Emperor Palpatine was announced for Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker, fans didn’t know what to think and there were all sorts of speculation about it. For a time, certain rumors about the inclusion of Matt Smith (Doctor Who, The Crown) in the cast of the film, and it was even rumored that the British actor would play a young version of Sheev Palpatine, or even appear as a clone of the Emperor.
After all that, there was no Matt Smith and many of the theories that were foreseen for Episode IX, never came to be. However, that has not stopped many fans, who continue to fantasize about having more content with Palpatine, even if they are prequels devoted to the character.
This is the case of apexform, a digital artist who has constantly delivered great work. Apexform reimagines all kinds of fandoms and has already done some incredible Star Wars fanart in the past, but this piece has certainly caught people’s attention since he imagines what Tom Hiddleston would be like if he played a young Palpatine.
Of course, the alliance between Hiddleston and Disney seems to be growing with the Loki series, and for now, Star Wars productions seem to be focused on the “past” of the franchise or between trilogies, as we are seeing with The Mandalorian or the series of Obi-Wan. Therefore, a prequel miniseries about Palpatine would not be so far fetched.
For now, the Emperor’s past has not been fully explored in the new canon, so perhaps a series with a young Palpatine on Disney + would be an interesting way to do it, and the role could be tailored to Tom Hiddleston.
