Keira Knightley is a part of the Star Wars universe, though she struggles to remember what part she played in it. Knightley played the role of Sabé, an important handmaiden and body double of Queen Padmé Amidala of Naboo (played by Natalie Portman) in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, a movie that her co-stars have been reflecting on lately. Sabé stood in for Padmé more than once during the most excellent trade negotiations that led to Naboo’s invasion. It seems Sabé made such a good body double for Queen Amidala that even Knightley thought she was Padmé, at least for a minute.
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“Was I not Padmé?” Knightley asked while discussing her Star Wars role with ComingSoon.net. “Oh, I was Sabé. You know, I saw the film once when it came out. I think I was 12 when I did it, and it came out, and I saw it the year after, and I’ve never seen it again. So I played Sabé, and she didn’t die? I hope she lived a long and happy life somewhere on a planet far, far away. I’m sure she did.”
With Star Wars expanding into television, including at least one female-fronted series, is there any possibility of Knightley reprising her role as Sabé? Knightley laughed off the idea.
“Reprising the character I can’t even remember the name of?” she said. “No, there hasn’t. There hasn’t. There should be, though. I’m sure her life has been long and interesting. But no, no, there’s been no discussion.”
According to the official Star Wars databank, “Sabé is the most important of Queen Amidala’s royal retinue of handmaidens. During crisis situations, Sabé and Amidala switch roles. Sabé becomes a decoy, disguised as the Queen, while Amidala adopts a simple gown of a handmaiden, and goes by her less formal name of Padmé Naberrie. When in this role, Sabé and Padmé secretly communicate with subtle signals as to not divulge their true identities. During the Trade Federation invasion of Naboo, Sabé posed as the Queen on several occasions.”
In another interview published in March, Knightley recalled having trouble staying awake during long shoots where she stood in the background. “I mean, I was 12. I literally don’t remember,” Knightley said. “I remember the headdress being so heavy, it gave me a headache. I really remember the headache from one of the headdresses. And I remember being in the background for such a long time that I’d actually fallen asleep. I was just sitting in a chair, and I was in the background, but I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I really remember that. But apart from that, I don’t remember anything else about it.”
Star Wars: The Phantom Menace is streaming now on Disney+.
