Star Wars: The Last Jedi might contain a clue as to how Emperor Palpatine’s return has evaded the heroes’ notice until Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Played by Scottish actor Ian McDiarmid, Sheev Palpatine has long been recognized as Star Wars’ biggest and most powerful villain. Throughout the Star Wars prequel trilogy, the seemingly mild-mannered senator slowly seized power over the galaxy, and seduced the heroic Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) to the dark side.

And though his appearances were scarce across the original trilogy, the Emperor - and Darth Vader’s - evil influence were surely evident in their dealings across the galaxy. This ensued until the climax of Return of the Jedi, when a regretful Vader betrayed his master and threw Palpatine to his apparent death. The Emperor was largely believed to have perished, with fractured Imperial remnants - like the First Order - forming in his absence. However, Palpatine survived his fall into the Death Star’s reactor and later re-appeared as the main villain in The Rise of Skywalker. The movie also revealed that Palpatine was the grandfather of Rey through a series of failed clones, and that he had been using Snoke and the larger First Order as puppets, making him a villain that unites all nine movies of the Skywalker saga.

Related: The Rise Of Skywalker: Every Connection To Clone Wars & Star Wars Rebels

The first sound of Palpatine's cackling laughter in the Rise of Skywalker trailer prompted a flurry of speculation as to how he could be seen returning in The Rise of Skywalker. But the Sith Lord's invocation of Darth Plagueis shows he was long interested in evading death. A crucial plot element in The Last Jedi may illuminate how the notoriously slippery Sith Lord has remained hidden for so long.

How Palpatine Succeeded In The Prequel Trilogy

Senator Palpatine and Padme Amidala

When the original trilogy was released, audiences wondered how someone that was so overtly evil came to rule the Star Wars galaxy. The following prequels soon answered this question and, as maligned as they may be, they tell a story that mimics real history. Through his devious machinations, Darth Sidious hijacked the Republic’s democracy and - surreptitiously - spread discord and fear throughout the increasingly corrupt organization. But, as his alter-ego Sheev Palpatine, he projected a virtuous, grandfatherly image to win support and slowly take charge as Supreme Chancellor. The Jedi Order were oblivious to his existence at the time of Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace, but they were soon alerted to the presence of an elusive dark side Force User as Palpatine’s power and influence grew. But rather than triggering their attuned senses, the aura of the dark side confounded the over-confident Jedi Order.

Related: Star Wars 9 Confirms The Skywalker Saga Is Sheev Palpatine's Story

This is was an important plot point since, as A New Hope had established, Force-sensitives can recognize a being’s identity, allegiances, and intention through proximity alone. Darth Vader famously demonstrated this in the saga’s first movie, when he immediately recognized that Obi-Wan Kenobi had inadvertently joined him aboard the Death Star after their ill-fated trip to Alderaan. Conversely, Master Yoda had numerous meetings with the Chancellor, and though he was occasionally suspicious of Palpatine, he didn't recognize him for what he was until it was far too late. However, though Palpatine was eventually successful, he could not prevent Yoda and the Jedi Order from being aware that a powerful Sith Lord was moving against them. And that’s where Luke Skywalker's use of the Force in The Last Jedi comes in.

The Last Jedi Revealed A New And Important Force Ability

Daisy Ridley as Rey and Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker in Star Wars The Last Jedi

Some 50 years after Palpatine took control of the senate (and 30 more since his death at Vader’s hand) Luke Skywalker was deep in exile – until the end of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, that is. The scavenger Rey located the one-time Jedi Master, and though she couldn't convince Luke to return to the Resistance with her, the heroine persuaded him to teach her the Jedi way. The Last Jedi details Rey’s first of three lessons, where Luke encourages her to open herself up to the Force and find the balance within. Rey began to sense the abundance of life around her, but she is shocked that she could not “see” her Master there among it. The narrative soon unveils why this is the case. It transpires that Luke, who had been traumatized by his failure with Ben Solo and become disillusioned with the legacy of the Jedi, that he had willingly cut himself off from the living Force itself.

Luke had done this so that he wouldn't be tempted to use his considerable powers in any way. Indeed, this move not only deprived him of his telekinesis, but of his empathetic connection to the wider galaxy. Certainly, Luke couldn't sense the link that Snoke had forged between Rey and Kylo Ren), and he was also dismayed to learn of Han Solo’s death having not felt it through the Force previously. It was only through sheer will and determination that he could open himself up to the Force again later in the film, whereby he immediately sensed his sister Leia’s plight light-years away.

Related: Star Wars Reveals What Rise Of Skywalker's Force Dyad Really Looks Like

Conversely, cutting himself off meant that others couldn't locate or sense Luke either. Even in his strong psychic visions with Rey, Luke remained invisible to his nephew. This narrative thread is notable for several reasons. The first of these is because it was originally an ability of the old Expanded Universe; thus, The Last Jedi marks its first appearance onscreen. Secondly, The Last Jedi’s comic book adaptation confirmed that removing oneself from the Force is an act that only experienced Force-users can perform. Star Wars movies tend to introduce Force abilities, which are then re-used and developed in later installments. In particular, novelizations and expanded universe material have helped to flesh out many of the new concepts introduced in the sequel trilogy Therefore, there’s a strong chance that this capability was how Palpatine stayed hidden until The Rise of Skywalker.

How Palpatine's Plan Was Affected

Palpatine Force Ghost in Star Wars The Rise of Skywalker

While there were a number of theories surrounding Palpatine's resurrection, Rise of Skywalker and its novelization describe the resurrection as part of Palpatine's connection to the Sith Eternal, a cult of loyalists, and the elemental nature of the dark side of the Force. When he was thrown off the bridge of the Death Star, Palpatine transferred his consciousness to a clone body located on the hidden planet of Exegol. The body was initially weak and unable to contain Palpatine's power, which helps to explain why Luke and other Force users didn't sense him, but he eventually regained his full strength. During this time, Palpatine also created a number of clones of himself, attempting to breed a new body for him to inhabit. Only one survived, who eventually became Rey's father and thus gave birth to the Star Wars sequels' "force dyad."

But then a question presents itself: If Palpatine survived his plunge into the Death Star, and has been operating since Return of the Jedi, how did Luke (as the leader of the new Jedi Order) or Kylo Ren not know that he had endured? It seems particularly strange that the latter two would not have mentioned him in either The Force Awakens or The Last Jedi, especially as an arrogant boast of the power of the dark side and its sway over the galaxy. The Last Jedi supplies the answer to this issue. Palpatine could very well have cut himself off from the Force, not out of guilt as Luke did, but to avoid detection from enemy Jedi and the remnants of the Empire. While avoiding detection, Palpatine used Snoke as a puppet to build the First Order.

Related: Why Palpatine Doesn't Sense Luke On Endor, But Vader Does

The notion that Palpatine would have suppressed his formidable power might seem to be at odds with the ambition he shows in previous movies. But this kind of subterfuge isn't so far-fetched considering Palpatine’s prior modus operandi throughout the Star Wars saga. The prequel trilogy depicted Palpatine playing the Republic and the Separatists against each other so that, regardless of which side won, he could seize control at the end of the Clone Wars. Few characters were aware of his dual identity, let alone that he was controlling both sides. As such, cutting himself off from the Force and pretending that he’s dead was a natural next step.

With the death of Luke Skywalker, the opportunity for Palpatine to emerge from hiding finally presented itself. Star Wars: The Last Jedi ends with not just a singular half-trained Jedi, but a diminished Resistance and Republic, along with an increasingly unstable Kylo Ren leading the weakened First Order. He put into motion a large fleet of ships, called the Final Order, with the intent of conquering the universe and establishing a new Sith empire. This required a huge amount of labor by Sith loyalists, building their own military over decades and breeding a new generation of children brainwashed to be loyal to the Sith. This plan also involved swaying Rey to the Dark Side, giving Palpatine a true heir and potential future body. The Jedi ability of suppression first demonstrated in The Last Jedi was crucial to Palpatine being able to operate undetected, giving him time to build his forces and spring into action in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker when the Jedi were at their most vulnerable.

NEXT: Star Wars Reveals 5 New Details About Palpatine's Backstory

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