‘The Mandalorian’ Season 2 Rumored To Explain Palpatine’s Return In ‘Rise of Skywalker’

baby yoda

Disney


Despite having only concluded its first season a few weeks ago, production on the second season of The Mandalorian is already underway as Disney aims to have the project ready for release by this fall.

It goes without saying that the first season The Mandalorian was a massive success, as it not only featured a rich and exciting story, but it also provided the world with Baby Yoda, who has since become a cultural phenomenon.

As Disney promised prior to the release of the series, The Mandalorian is set to have a legitimate impact on the larger Star Wars universe, and according to recent rumors, that impact may be further explained in season two, as it’s being reported that Baby Yoda will somehow be connected to the return of Palpatine in The Rise of Skywalker.

Warning: spoilers for season one of The Mandalorian will follow.

Giancarlo Esposito’s Moff Gideon will be unveiled as the one behind Palpatine’s resurrection. The show’s big bad was already established in season 1 to have been a loyal Imperial officer, with Gideon now commanding his own remnant of the Empire’s Stormtrooper army.

According to our intel, Gideon will soon come across Palpatine’s body somehow and conduct experiments on it concerning both the Force and cloning. The specifics are still a bit unclear, but this is apparently what will bring Darth Sidious back to life, teeing up his role in the Sequel Trilogy. [via WeGotThisCovered]

The news should come as no surprise, as we previously discussed how Baby Yoda could be connected to Palpatine’s return immediately after the film was released:

In the early episodes of The Mandalorian, The Client and Dr. Pershing want to acquire the child in order to “extract the necessary material and be done with it.” While Dr. Pershing — who can be seen “wearing a uniform with the Kaminoan cloning symbol on it, a reference to the events of Attack of the Clones” — very much wants the Child alive, The Client — in addition to other various bounty hunters — has been instructed that killing the Child works just as well.

Regardless, it is this hint towards cloning that has led some to believe the process used to create Baby Yoda could have also been used to re-create Palpatine. [via BroBible]

Given that it appears Disney will be taking a more Marvel Cinematic Universe-like approach when it comes to the Star Wars franchise going forward, connecting their various franchises with a singular narrative thread is Step One in that direction.

You can check out our full explanation of the connection between Baby Yoda and Palpatine here.

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Eric is a New York City-based writer who still isn’t quite sure how he’s allowed to have this much fun for a living and will tell anyone who listens that Gotham City is canonically in New Jersey. Follow him on Twitter @eric_ital for movie and soccer takes or email him eric@brobible.com.

Eric Italiano BroBIble avatar
Eric Italiano is a NYC-based writer who spearheads BroBible's Pop Culture and Entertainment content. He covers topics such as Movies, TV, and Video Games, while interviewing actors, directors, and writers.