In 2019 Oscar Isaac uttered the now iconic words “somehow Palpatine returned”. This is widely considered a low point in the Star Wars franchise, dialogue perhaps more embarrassing than any cheesy line George Lucas ever came up with.
The Rise of Skywalker didn’t bother to explain the “somehow” and we were left with Merry Brandybuck’s mutterings about “dark science, cloning, secrets only the Sith knew”. Since then the franchise has slowly filled in the blanks.
Apr. 2023’s ‘Chapter 23: The Spies’ of The Mandalorian season 3 revealed that the Imperials have something up their sleeves and were working together in secret to ensure their success. It was revealed in the show that Moff Gideon escaped and he’s got Elia Kane feeding him the information he needs. Captain Pellaeon went on to namedrop “Project Necromancer.”
On Feb. 24 2024 we got more information in The Bad Batch season 3, with the third episode ‘Shadows of Tantiss’ giving us yet more insight into Palpatine’s long-running plans. So, after all this, what do we know?
What is Project Necromancer?
In The Mandalorian, Captain Pellaeon stated that Grand Admiral Thrawn’s return will bring back the strength needed for the Imperial army and that Commandant Hux is in charge of Project Necromancer. During the Shadow Council’s meeting, it was also revealed that Hux is interested in Doctor Pershing’s research into cloning. This was supported by Gideon’s comments to Hux, claiming that “the creation of clones was Hux’s obsession.”
One may first assume that Project: Necromancer is what Moff Gideon was doing in Mandalore, where he plans to use influences from the Jedi, Mandalorians, and clones. After all, a necromancer is someone who wants to bring something back to life. In Moff Gideon’s speech to Din Djarin, Bo Katan, and the rest of the Mandalorians, he says that Mandalore “will live on” through his name and influence. He also plans to use Mandalore’s rich resources to build his Dark Trooper army.
However, based on the Shadow Council’s conversation at the start of the episode, it seems like the project is more than just building an army to take down the New Republic. It could be assumed that Project Necromancer is related to Emperor Palpatine’s return in the sequel trilogy.
The clue viewers got for this was Hux’s interest in Doctor Pershing’s research. Pershing was known to have a heavy interest in cloning and believed that his work could benefit others if delivered into the right hands. The word “necromancy” means the practice of resurrecting the dead, so a strong hint that this is how Emperor Palpatine was revived and has multiple clones of himself. Considering how The Mandalorian takes place 30 years before the sequel trilogy, that is enough time to revive a powerful Sith Lord. After all, the practices of the dark side tend to be seen as “unnatural.”
Further details emerge
The Bad Batch expanded on the project’s roots, confirming that it began on the planet Weyland in the Mount Tantiss facility and was headed by Chief Scientist Dr. Royce Hemlock. Known for his “unorthodox” genetic experiments, Dr. Hemlock began his career in the science corps of the Galactic Republic but was booted out after his superiors discovered his research.
Building on work began by the Kaminoans on the Clone Army, Hemlock’s apparent goal was to not simply clone a person, but also transfer midichlorians (“M-Count replication”) into the clones. This would theoretically result in the clone having the same degree of Force sensitivity as the original subject, a factor vital to the success of a project to create a backup clone body for Darth Sidious.
By the time of Return of the Jedi Hemlock’s experimentation had progressed quite far, but wasn’t perfected. So, when Sidious’ was “killed” by Darth Vader emergency plans were put in place to rapidly create whatever body they could. The result was a malformed and rushed clone that was only ever intended to be temporary. Existing in this decaying form left Sidious weakened and in constant pain, so demands were made to create a better body for him to inhabit.
Supreme Leader Snoke was the result of those demands, successfully combining Sidious DNA with his Force Sensitivity. However, upon glancing at Snoke’s body Sidious deemed the vessel “unworthy”. Rather than discard the promising specimen Snoke was repurposed into a pawn that would eventually run the First Order.
The experiments would also result in the individual considered Palpatine’s “son”. In this instance, the clone itself was perfectly healthy, though lacked any link to the Force. Sidious rejected him as a “useless creature”, though allowed him to live in the hopes he’d carry on the Palpatine bloodline. He did, resulting in the birth of Rey, who Sidious slowly became convinced was the perfect vessel for his spirit.
That’s all the information we have, but we suspect more details will emerge in future episodes of The Mandalorian and other Star Wars material.