Matt Smith's role in Star Wars 9 will end the Skywalker Saga, bringing the 42-year story to a close in presumably dramatic fashion.
Directed by J.J. Abrams, Keri Russell is going to be Zorii Bliss, while Dominic Monaghan has been cast in an undisclosed role.
On top of all of those, there's Doctor Who star is very much a closely guarded secret, but it's quite likely linked to Palpatine in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
The Mystery Of If Matt Smith Is Even In Star Wars 9
Matt Smith was reported to be in Star Wars 9 back in August 2018, although it's worth noting that wasn't an official casting announcement. Still, it was the kind that seemed extremely accurate and reliably sourced, so there was little reason to doubt the veracity of it. After that, there were rumors about Smith's role in Star Wars 9, which is to be expected when any actor of note is cast in a movie of this size, although of course there was again nothing official this end from Lucasfilm or Disney.
Things took a twist, however, back in March of this year, when Star Wars happened in May. Smith had previously been listed in the cast for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker on Disney's official UK website, but then in May his name was removed - so what gives? Since Smith was supposed to have an important part in the film, it seems unlikely that he was never in it, or that it's even been cut.
Instead, it's worth ing that Star Trek Into Darkness). It's likely, if not 100% confirmed, that Matt Smith is in Star Wars 9, and is now another one of Abrams' mystery boxes just waiting to be opened when the film releases.
Could Matt Smith Be Connected To Palpatine?
After he was cast, the biggest rumor doing the rounds was that Matt Smith would be young Palpatine in Star Wars 9. That obviously still hasn't been confirmed, but it does nonetheless tie into what the most likely use of Smith in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is: that he's connected to Palpatine in one way or another, and there are a good few options for just how that could come to be in the movie itself. It may very well be that Smith really is young Palpatine after all, meaning those first rumors were true. Star Wars 9 is presumably going to tie-up Palpatine's entire story and reveal a major plan that we haven't seen, so it's not out of the question there'll be flashbacks to a much younger version of the character to tie into that.
Of course, this is Star Wars, so there are plenty of other options too. Palpatine loves his clones - and there's a fair suggestion that Palpatine in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - that there's a very good chance we aren't actually going to see Ian McDiarmid in the role.
Palpatine was a toy in the D23 Star Wars 9 poster, which only further suggests we're not going to see McDiarmid in a physical role. Like with Smith's casting, Lucasfilm is doing what it can to hide what Palpatine looks like in this film, which only really makes sense if we assume it's not McDiarmid. But since Palpatine seemingly has such a large role in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, then someone must actually be playing him.
Why Smith As Palpatine Makes Sense For Star Wars 9
Based upon everything we know about Smith's casting (or apparent lack thereof), and what's already been revealed about how the Emperor fits into the film, then Matt Smith playing Palpatine in Star Wars 9 makes a lot of sense for both the actor and the character. Smith's part was described as a "key role" and, outside of the core characters who are already ed for, they don't get more important than Palpatine.
It's worth considering the secrecy around Smith's casting and Palpatine's appearance. Neither is completely unprecedented, but they're not entirely normal either. So for a film to be doing both effectively at the same time does suggest they're linked. It'd be a weird coincidence otherwise, but also there's no discernible reason to be hiding Smith's role in Star Wars 9 unless he is Palpatine. Even if he was, say, Rey's father, there wouldn't necessarily be an obvious way of figuring that out just from a fleeting shot or two in a trailer. Palpatine is different, because he's going to have to look the part, and even without context that's a difficult thing to disguise.
In of Palpatine had a contingency plan in place, and it's possible this then extended to a clone, a willing (or unwilling) vessel for him to take over, or another means of possessing another human's body. It allows McDiarmid to return, but without demanding too much of him. This works well for Matt Smith too: he's a good actor (and one with great physicality), but one who hasn't completely made the leap in a blockbuster sense after Doctor Who, so even if it's not a lengthy role, it'd still be a big one for him.
There could even be a chance that Smith isn't completely lying when he says he's not in the film, at least from a certain point-of-view. He's skilled at keeping secrets from his time on Doctor Who, and it'd be quite fitting with that and Abrams' sensibilities if what he means is that he's playing a warped version of Palpatine: perhaps a body that's been disfigured, like the old one, so that Smith is hardly recognizable. But even without that, Smith seems like a good fit to be filling at least part of Palpatine's role in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
