Ian McDiarmid to Reprise His Role as Palpatine

Good, goooood, our favorite Emperor has returned to the franchise. Everything is proceeding as he has foreseen.

Fans of the television series, Star Wars: Rebels will be delighted to discover that Palpatine actor, Ian McDiarmid is reprising his role as the evil Emperor in the second half of the final season. Palpatine previously appeared in season two of the show, but was instead voiced by Sam Witwer, who is also known for voicing another villain, Darth Maul.

The mid-season trailer brought many more dramatic moments, not the least of which was the Emperor's appearance. His return represents a dramatic threat to the Ghost crew, one they have never seen before. "He’s a sophisticated villain,” executive producer Dave Filoni said, "I wanted something more insidious than perhaps lightsaber play," Filoni explained. "The Emperor can appear so many different ways. He can seem frail at times or powerful at times. He’s the ultimate deceiver, and he plays on your own wants and greeds."

While nothing has been confirmed as far as seeing McDiarmid in another live action film, he, like Ewan McGregor, has stated that he would be happy to return to the franchise. "I suppose there must be a chance but I think you'd find out about it more quickly than I would. But there is what they call the anthology series and, actually, the most recent one, Rogue One, was about the time when I was in charge. I was referred to a few times, Darth Vader popped up, but you did not see me. Maybe they are keeping me as a surprise for later but I have no idea. Of course, I don't want anyone else to play him."

Star Wars: Rebels continues February 19, 9PM EST on Disney XD.