10 Star Wars Fan Theories Better Than What We Got
8. Matt Smith Plays A Young Palpatine
Heading into the Skywalker Saga-ending The Rise of Skywalker, the exciting news of one-time Doctor Who Matt Smith being reportedly brought into the Force-sensitive fold left many pondering precisely who the talented Brit could be playing in this ninth instalment.
As suggest by The Weekly Planet Podcast (via Esquire), it wasn't outside of the realms of possibility that Smith could be on the verge of stepping into the shoes of a younger Palpatine, perhaps in flashback or projection form, over the course of J.J. Abrams' return to the galaxy far, far away...
However, while that would've no doubt been a sight to behold, Smith never actually made it into the flick at all. The actor would at least confirm that he was in talks to appear in Episode IX at one stage, though, telling Happy Sad Confused's Josh Horowitz:
"We were close to me being in it, but then it just never quite happened. I think the thing they were thinking of me for, eventually the part became obsolete and they didn’t need it and so I never got to be in Star Wars.”
Making matters more painful, the star also admitted said role would've been a "big thing", too.
What could've been, eh?