Overview
- Ian McDiarmid said at Spacecon San Antonio on Thursday that George Lucas pitched a live-action series tracing Emperor Palpatine’s rise and rule and compared its arc to dramatizations of historical dictators.
- McDiarmid quoted Lucas as describing an assassination-attempt subplot and suggested McDiarmid might even direct an episode, but he called the idea “very speculative” and said it never moved into production.
- Reporters note the disclosure adds the Palpatine concept to a long list of Lucas-era projects that were developed in some form but ultimately shelved or cancelled.
- Some outlets have suggested the notion could relate to the long-rumored Star Wars: Underworld series, but no direct link between the Palpatine pitch and Underworld has been confirmed.
- The revelation underscores how Lucas’s pre-2012 ambitions differed from the later Disney-era strategy that prioritized serialized streaming shows such as The Mandalorian and Andor and may prompt renewed interest in other unmade Lucasfilm projects.