Star Wars has continued to expand its lore over the past four decades, introducing thousands of characters along the way. However, none has been the target of such fan hatred as Jar Jar Binks, introduced in 1999's The Phantom Menace, primarily as comedy relief. The accident-prone Gungan exile turned military leader and politician has been criticized as everything from a clown to a racist stereotype. Yet, despite the dislike for the character, Jar Jar Banks has been the focus of one of the prequel trilogy's more intriguing, and enduring, fan theories: that Jar Jar is secretly a Sith Lord.
That notion that the Gungan isn't simply a bungling do-gooder but rather a Sith Lord who worked to bring down the Republic from within dates back at least to 2015, with a Reddit theory positing that Jar Jar was a trained Force user and Sith collaborator, followed by a parody trailer for The Force Awakens titled "The Binks Awakens." Since then, the idea has taken hold online, with countless fans contributing purported evidence to prop up the theory.
Although the theory is easy to dismiss as little more than a parody of a reviled Star Wars character that seeks to make sense of his actions, it also serves to strengthen the character and the franchise.
Following Jar Jar's introduction in The Phantom Menace, he was placed in an unlikely position of power within the Galactic Senate. Still a goofy character -- indeed, George Lucas drew inspiration for the character from Goofy -- Jar Jar unwittingly delivers a final decision that dooms the Republic. By diverting all emergency powers to Chancellor Palpatine, he essentially hands the galaxy to the Dark Side. While this fits in with his persona, the Darth Jar Jar fan theory suggests it's all part of his nefarious plan to ensure his Master obtains absolute power.
The theory argues that Palpatine knows no one will believe an idiot and an old man can dismantle the Republic. Many things in the prequel trilogy are more sinister than they appear, which somehow no one picks up on. This, too, supports the Darth Jar Jar theory.
Because the Star Wars galaxy is so vast, some characters suffer from a lack of attention or a poor personality; Jar Jar has always been a prime example, but so was Boba Fett, at least originally. While he always had a cool look, he spent decades as the villain who showed up for two movies, and then embarrassingly fell to his death. His redemption was far from fast, and before his appearance on Star Wars: The Mandalorian, it was the fans keeping his legacy alive. The same can be said for Jar Jar.
In modern canon, Jar Jar Binks' life takes a catastrophic nosedive following the events of the prequels. In the novel Empire's End, the Galactic Senate forces him out of politics for his unwitting hand in aiding the Palpatine. The last time he's seen, he's a street performer entertaining children and, as far as anyone knows, he has been doing that ever since. In many ways, the Darth Jar Jar fan theory is a much better conclusion to his story.
Fan theories help the Star Wars franchise feel even more robust, and add deeper context to the overall lore. Lucas himself said Jar Jar was "the key to all of this," but the canon has quietly confirmed that he was never a Sith Lord. However, Darth Jar Jar has done more justice to the character and, by extension, the prequel films, than anything in canon.