Star Wars: Darth Vader Brings Back Surprising Phantom Menace Character

With Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, various corners of the Skywalker Saga were united for the conclusion of the narrative, though the big-screen adventure isn’t the only story that is reviving characters from the series’ past, with Marvel Comics’ Star Wars: Darth Vader bringing back a character from the prequel films that many audiences may have forgotten about. The series is unfolding after the events of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, with this character’s return marking one of their first appearances in the galaxy far, far away in the decades since fans first met them back in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace.

WARNING: Spoilers below for Star Wars: Darth Vader #2

On the final page of the series’ debut issue, Vader was confronted with a figure who he assumed to be his long-lost love Padmé Amidala, based solely on her appearance. Given her death in Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, this clearly would have complicated matters, with this new issue confirming instead that the character is Sabé, one of Padmé’s royal handmaidens. With these handmaidens often taking the place of the queen in certain situations, a requirement be that they resemble her, with the combination of that physical resemblance and the years that have passed since Vader last saw Padmé resulting in his initial confusion.

Both Vader and Sabé are at least briefly uniting for an adventure, as they both seek justice for the tragic fate that Padmé has suffered.

In The Phantom Menace, Sabé was played by a then-unknown Keira Knightley, who recently revealed that, despite her excitement to be in a Star Wars film, her character’s duties of sitting around silently resulted in a few instances of her falling asleep.

“I mean, I was 12. I literally don’t remember,” Knightley shared with Total Film. “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: Darth Vader #2 is on sale now.

Are you excited for Sabé’s return? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!