Star Wars fans have often questioned who is the father of Anakin Skywalker, leading to theorizing Palpatine created him through immaculate conception with Shmi Skywalker. It looked like this was close to the truth when Marvel’s Darth Vader #25 showed a Force vision of Palpatine influencing Shmi's pregnancy. However, this might not be the case.
The StarWarsLeaks Reddit shared a screenshot of a conversation with Lucasfilm Story Group executive Matt Martin on Twitter. In the exchange, Martin confirms it was never the comic's intention to connect Palpatine to Anakin's birth. Although Charles Soule wrote Darth Vader #25, Martin reiterates he had a hand in the story and would've removed any confirmation that Palpatine was Anakin's father. He then explains the pregnancy panel was "all in Anakin’s head ... I can tell you definitively, as someone who worked on the comic, that is 100% not the intended implication."
In Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, Palpatine attempted to lure Anakin to the dark side with the story of Darth Plagueis and the idea he could save Padmé from her grim fate. There was some hint in that film Palpatine may have been responsible for Anakin's conception by manipulating midi-chlorians. When Darth Vader #25 was first released, it seemed like a major turning point for the story of Anakin and Vader. Instead of the Emperor pulling the strings from behind the curtain like he did with Supreme Leader Snoke, it looks like Palpatine simply took Anakin on as his protégé when he sensed the power within him.
Directed and co-written by J.J. Abrams, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker stars Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, Billie Lourd, Keri Russell, Anthony Daniels, Mark Hamill, Billy Dee Williams, and Carrie Fisher, with Naomi Ackie and Richard E. Grant.