While the original Star Wars trilogy was a major event for one generation of moviegoers, for the generation that came after, the Star Wars prequels were just as important. The stellar box office success of the re-release of Star Wars: The Revenge of the Sith shows just how much people love that movie in particular, and that includes Palpatine himself, Ian McDiarmid.
Speaking with Variety on this 20th anniversary of the release of Revenge of the Sith, the actor admitted he particularly appreciates the third film, as it gave him a great deal more to do than either of the other two prequel films. He especially loved his screen time with Hayden Christensen, as well as seeing that his character was better than expected with a lightsaber. He explained…
The manipulation was always fun. But also, I had more to do in “Revenge of the Sith” — I had more screen time, more time with Hayden [Christensen] — so that was more satisfying. I also had no idea that Palpatine would have power with a weapon, so to find that he was very good — to give my stunt double full credit — with a saber was interesting.
Palpatine is very much the man behind the curtain throughout the Star Wars prequels, but his master plan to destroy the Galactic Republic and become Emperor is so well put together, with nobody suspecting him, that he doesn’t actually do a lot throughout the movies, manipulating others into taking the steps he requires.
The final film, however, sees it all come together, allowing the slow burn of political intrigue, including, yes, the hated trade disputes, to all come together in a way that actually works remarkably well.
But Revenge of the Sith does have the famous Darth Plagueis sequence, which I'll argue is the best scene in the entire Prequel Trilogy. Ian McDiarmid is excellent in the scene, as he manipulates Anakin Skywalker directly, doing more to turn him to the Dark Side in the conversation than possibly anything else that happens.
And as McDiarmid pointed out, we also get to see the Emperor battle with a lightsaber, which is something few were probably expecting, but it works quite well. If we’re to understand that one’s ability to use a lightsaber is as much about being able to use the Force as it is physical ability, there’s no reason that even Palpatine shouldn’t be an accomplished wielder of the weapon. Though in this case, it seems McDiarmid didn't go through the intense lightsaber training that other actors did, leaving that to his stunt performer.
Considering how many people went to the Revenge of the Sith re-release, making it one of the most successful re-releases of all time, a lot of fans find the movie just as satisfying.
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