What if Natalie Portman's Padme Amidala had turned to the dark side instead of Anakin Skywalker? One fan artist imagines the former Queen of Naboo as a Sith Lord in this piece of Star Wars fan art.
Sith Padme, or as one commentator calls her, “Badme”, is the work of Reddit user "Parker_td," who posted the fan art on the official Star Wars subreddit. Padme Amidala was a key character in the Star Wars prequel trilogy. First introduced in Star Wars - Episode 1: The Phantom Menace, she served as the adolescent monarch of the peaceful planet Naboo during a crisis that would see her home-world occupied by the greedy Trade Federation. With the aid of two Jedi Knights, Padme traveled to Coruscant to plead her case to the galactic senate, meeting a young Anakin Skywalker along the way, who would one day grow up to become her future husband and the father of her children.
As it turns out, the entire Naboo crisis was merely a rouse orchestrated by Senator Palpatine, a.k.a. Darth Sidious, so that he could ascend to the role of Chancellor, paving the way for his role as future Emperor. Padme would go on to become the senator representing Naboo and was eventually reunited with a now grown-up Anakin Skywalker after an assassination attempt on her life. The Naboo crisis and the attempt on her life were both key incidents that would eventually lead to the Clone Wars, and ultimately the fall of the Galactic Republic. Of course, it was Anakin who would eventually turn to the dark side and become the evil Darth Vader, but it’s interesting to think about if things were reversed. Padme is, after all, from the same home-world as Emperor Palpatine and she was instrumental in his election to the Chancellor, allowing the Sith Lord to one day rule the galaxy, even if she didn’t realize it at the time. Or did she?
Despite playing an integral role within George Lucas’ divisive Star Wars prequel trilogy, Padme is often seen as merely a love interest who was mostly there to give birth and then die of a broken heart, pushing Anakin towards the dark side. Despite receiving less screen time than her male counterparts, Padme served as an ideological opposite to what Anakin was becoming. As a queen and senator, Padme was kind and optimistic, with a strong sense of justice and a passion for democracy, much like her future daughter Princess Leia Organa. While Leia would go on to lead the rebel alliance, Padme would help create it with Leia’s adopted father, Senator Bail Organa. There were even deleted scenes from Revenge of the Sith that showed Padme meeting with Bail and future rebellion leader Mon Mothma as they prepared for the collapse of the republic. It is ironic though that Padme also accidentally helped form the Empire.
While Padme was just another pawn in Palpatine's game, it’s interesting to think what would have happened had she been strong with the force. Maybe she would have been a better candidate for the Sith Lord's apprentice than Anakin Skywalker. She already held considerable sway within the senate and was deeply beloved by her people. Perhaps in another timeline, we could see a young Leia Organa train to become a Jedi Knight instead of Luke Skywalker and ultimately face down the evil Darth Vadette, only to discover that the true identity of the Sith Lord is the mother she previously thought dead.
In the years since the prequel trilogy, Padme has been featured in other Star Wars media and stories. She was one of many reoccurring characters on the animated TV show Star Wars: The Clone Wars and was the subject of the novel Star Wars: Queens Shadow written E.K Johnston.
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Source: r/StarWars