Credit: LucasfilmNatalie Portman may return to the faraway galaxy sooner than we thought.
She ruled Naboo, married a Jedi, and died of a broken heart — but Natalie Portman’s chapter in the Star Wars galaxy may not be over just yet.
Portman, 43, first entered the saga in 1999’s Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace, playing Padmé Amidala, who returned in both subsequent entries of George Lucas’s prequel trilogy, Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones (2002) and Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith (2005).
A senator, queen, and ultimately the mother of Luke and Leia, Padmé was central to Anakin Skywalker’s fall and transformation into Darth Vader.
But her absence in the decades since has left a gap that fans haven’t forgotten. While Padmé returned as a central character in the animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008–2020), Portman was nowhere to be seen — instead, Catherine Taber took on voice duties.
Now, 20 years after her last appearance, Natalie Portman is once again addressing whether she’d consider returning. While promoting her new film Fountain of Youth, the Oscar-winning star was asked by Entertainment Tonight if a return to Star Wars was possible.
“Listen, nobody’s asked me,” she said, “But I’m open to everything, you know? Life’s only fun if you’re open to every possibility.” Watch the full clip below:
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It’s not the first time Portman has floated the idea. Back in 2023, she told GQ “no one’s ever asked me to return, but I’m open to it.” Earlier this year, The Hot Mic’s Kristian Harloff reported that Portman was “close to reaching a deal” to reprise her role — only for Star Wars News Net to publish a follow-up claiming its own source had denied the rumor.
In another report earlier this year, it was claimed that Portman had filmed scenes for Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022)–which saw Hayden Christensen reprise his role as Anakin Skywalker–while she was filming Thor: Love and Thunder (2022), but that they were cut by Lucasfilm.
Now, fans are wondering if there’s room for Padmé in the current slate of Star Wars projects, and the most likely candidate is Ahsoka Season 2. Her Revenge of the Sith co-star Hayden Christensen also returned as Anakin Skywalker in the first season of that series, appearing via the mystical World Between Worlds.
With the second season now in development, it wouldn’t be a stretch to imagine Padmé making a long-awaited appearance.
Not one to shy away from her ties to the faraway galaxy, Portman previously parodied The Phantom Menace in her Saturday Night Live skit, “Natalie’s Rap 2.0,” in which she hilariously defends the character Jar Jar Binks (Ahmed Best) and the prequel trilogy.
Whether Portman’s return is already secretly in the works remains to be seen.
Would you like to see Natalie Portman reprise her role as Padmé Amidala in a future Star Wars film or television series? Let us know in the comments below!