Lately, Star Wars has been much more successful with its TV shows than with its movies, and it’s uncertain if that will change anytime soon. Popular series like The Mandalorian, Ahsoka, Andor, The Bad Batch, and Skeleton Crew have resonated with audiences, and those are just some of the shows currently available. Recently, the actor who plays Emperor Palpatine shared that another Star Wars TV series was once in the works, but it was eventually cancelled.
During a panel at Spacecon 2026, actor Ian McDiarmid, who played Emperor Palpatine, shared that a live-action series about Palpatine’s life was once planned. According to McDiarmid, George Lucas pitched the idea as a way to explore the Emperor’s ascent to power and time ruling, drawing some parallels to the story of Hitler, including a failed assassination attempt. McDiarmid said Lucas even suggested he could direct an episode, a thought that briefly overwhelmed him. Unfortunately, the project never moved forward.
The Star Wars Palpatine Series Joins A Long List of Cancelled Projects
The number of shelved or cancelled Star Wars projects is now quite large, and seems to increase every year. A recent example is a project called The Hunt for Ben Solo, proposed by Steven Soderbergh and Adam Driver. Lucasfilm liked the idea, but Disney executives Bob Iger and Alan Bergman turned it down because they didn’t believe Ben Solo could still be alive.
Before focusing solely on the story of Palpatine, George Lucas explored many different ideas for Star Wars projects. He considered creating an entire film or series featuring only droids – with no human characters at all – and also developed a concept centered around the Wookies.
Let me tell you, there were a lot of ideas floating around after the success of ‘Rogue One.’ Beyond what Lucas was planning, I heard whispers of a Boba Fett spin-off being developed with Josh Trank at the helm. It never got an official announcement, but Trank did eventually leave whatever Star Wars project he was attached to – and it all happened around the same time as the other changes we saw happening.
The planned Star Wars: Underworld TV series was another high-profile cancellation. It had been in development for years and was intended to be a more mature, gritty take on the Star Wars universe. Reports indicated the show would have explored the Empire’s growing influence throughout the galaxy, including criminal elements like drug trafficking and prostitution on Coruscant (according to Den of Geek). There was even talk of a bounty hunter taking center stage. However, after Disney bought Lucasfilm, the project never really got off the ground.
Another notable cancellation was the Star Wars 1313 video game, a highly anticipated Star Wars title set in the criminal underworld and starring Boba Fett. It was designed to be a more mature game with fast-paced, cinematic action focused on cover-based combat, but it was cancelled when Disney shut down LucasArts. These are just some of the major projects that never came to fruition, and unfortunately, another one appears to have been added to the list.
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2026-06-18 06:41