Darth Plagueis could make his Star Wars live-action debut in Disney+'s The Acolyte.
One of Revenge of the Sith's most iconic scenes came as Darth Sidious told Anakin Skywalker the "tragedy of Darth Plaegius the Wise", his former master who had never appeared on screen before.
Plagueis was strong enough with the force to create life and prevent those he loved from dying until he was killed by Sidious himself.
Darth Plagueis' Potential Role in The Acolyte
The Acolyte will take place during the High Republic era around 100 years before the events of The Phantom Menace and the Skywalker Saga.
Darth Plagueis was killed by Sidious shortly before or during the events of Episode I when he took Maul as his apprentice, thus abiding by the Rule of Two.
It is unclear exactly how old he was at the time of his death, but some estimates based on non-canon Legends tales place him around 115. As Plagueis had force powers allowing him to sustain life, he could have applied these to himself until Sidious managed to catch him off guard.
While his age in official Star Wars canon is unclear, he could be in his teenage years during The Acolyte based on these past estimates. As such, the potential is there for Darth Plagueis to appear in The Acolyte as a young and aspiring Dark Side user, perhaps diving into his descent into evil.
The Acolyte has been confirmed to dive heavily into the emerging Dark Side powers during the latter years of the High Republic.
Some have also theorized one of the Sith featured in the Disney+ series could be Darth Tenebrous, the master to Plagueis who would presumably have been in his prime around the timeline of The Acolyte.
The series' first trailer featured an intriguing shot of Amandla Stenberg's Mae looking off to a shadowed figure in the distance. As Mae will seemingly be affiliated with the Dark Side, perhaps this could be one of these Sith characters.
Going even further back, the series may well reference Darth Bane due to his key role in evolving the Sith to its modern incarnation and notably creating the Rule of Two, which says there can only ever be a master and an apprentice.
Will Darth Plagueis Actually Appear in Live Action?
Thanks to the Rule of Two, only two Sith can be active at once in the Star Wars galaxy, but there is always room for other Dark Side users to appear. With The Acolyte set to focus on emerging Dark Side powers during the High Republic, one would have to imagine the current Sith would prove to be major players.
Based on the placement of The Acolyte in the timeline, around 100 years before The Phantom Menace, even if Darth Plagueis was not quite active yet, his master Darth Tenebrous certainly should be. As such, it seems likely at least one of the Sith pair will make their presence felt in The Acolyte.
That said, the Disney+ series is reportedly "planned" to run for multiple seasons, meaning Lucasfilm may opt to save such vital Star Wars characters for further into its run or perhaps even other projects set in the High Republic era.
So far, there have been no reports or rumors pointing to either Sith being cast for live-action, and with production having wrapped last year, this does seem to cast doubt on them making their way into The Acolyte.
Then again, Lucasfilm did manage to keep Luke Skywalker's return in The Mandalorian Season 2 under wraps, meaning anything is truly possible.
The Acolyte will have a two-episode premiere on June 4 on Disney+.
