Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker recently had its final trailer released. And while fans are curious about how Palpatine would return in the upcoming movie, it looks like the trailer could have hinted Palpatine's fate in Episode IX.
Although Palpatine's face wasn't exactly shown in the trailer, Rey is seen facing someone who appears to be the Sith Lord. The figure seems to be hooded so as not to reveal his face but Rey could very likely be confronting Palpatine in that scene.
CBR points out that Palpatine seems to be "wired" to a piece of machinery behind his throne. And that he's just not simply sitting on the throne, it looks like it could actually be his version of life support. It is known that Palpatine is very very old and this could be a means of keeping him alive due to extreme old age or a way to survive his fall from Return of the Jedi.
This led the outlet to believe that with Palpatine having life support, this could be similar to the fate of Anakin Skywalker, Palpatine's greatest apprentice. If you recall, it was shown in Revenge of the Sith that Anakin had a battle with his mentor Obi-Wan Kenobi on Mustafar. This fight resulted in Anakin losing his limbs and getting "engulfed" in flames. Palpatine managed to save him by using medical technology and eventually turned him to the infamous Darth Vader.
There's no telling if the wirings on his throne are for his life support or that those could be referring to another detail within the movie. However, if this were true, it is compelling that Vader and Palpatine have the same fate seeing that both started off with great power and then eventually are fighting for life with the use of machines.
Regardless, we would have to wait to find out both Palpatine and the heroes' fate when the film debuts two months from now.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker premieres on December 20, 2019.
Also Read: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Trailer Brings Back Unused Concept Design For The Sith Throne