We’re nine episodes into Andor, and the show has so far resisted any fan-pleasing cameos from across Star Wars canon. Whereas The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett were happy to throw in Luke Skywalker, it’s genuinely difficult to imagine, say, Obi-Wan Kenobi popping up for a guest appearance.
That said, there is one presence Andor has been dropping some big hints towards. Emperor Palpatine is at the heart of the Empire, and while he leaves the day-to-day paperwork to his subordinates, we know he was consulted about the heist on Aldhani, and that he’s on the minds of people attending Mon Mothma’s dinner parties. So, could we see everyone’s favorite evil wrinkly grandpa in the show?
Fans are not only debating whether it’ll happen, but they’re also asking if Palpatine would even fit into this story:
Some don’t want Force powers ruining this down-to-earth story:
The show is not short of compelling villains, even without Palps:
Maybe a short appearance would work, but we agree that he shouldn’t be out there in the field meeting Cassian Andor:
This is also an extremely smart point, as Palpatine’s more theatrical evil would risk undermining Andor‘s core thesis:
Perhaps he really is better as a mysterious offscreen presence:
We tend to agree that Andor is better off leaving the space wizard drama in the background, though as fans of Ian McDiarmid chewing scenery, we can’t deny we wouldn’t be happy to see him. We’d love for the Emperor to show up as an unexpected guest at one of Mon Mothma’s many Coruscant dinner parties, as seeing these elegantly robed socialites trying to cope with a black-robed creature of pure evil making small talk and nibbling on canapes would be a very funny scene.
Andor airs Wednesdays on Disney Plus.