What If Padmé Died In Attack of the Clones? How Anakin's Story Changes
Bounty hunters hired by the Separatists attempted to assassinate Padmé Amidala in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, and the Star Wars saga would have been quite different if they’d succeeded. Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, a.k.a. the Sith Lord Darth Sidious, orchestrated the Separatist Crisis and the subsequent Clone Wars in secret, playing both sides so that he could turn the Galactic Republic into his autocratic regime, the Galactic Empire. Anakin Skywalker was key to his plans, with his turn to the dark side and rebirth as Darth Vader helping Palpatine destroy the Jedi, but this tragic fall from grace would have played out differently if Padmé died at the start of Attack of the Clones.
Palpatine had targeted Anakin Skywalker for dark side corruption since the Trade Federation’s invasion of Naboo had been thwarted. Throughout Skywalker’s Jedi education, Palpatine stoked the fires of his ego and dissatisfaction with the Jedi Order’s philosophies. While Palpatine hadn’t planned everything out, such as the tragic death of Anakin’s mother and his eventual marriage to Padmé, they played perfectly into his plans and he made adjustments to them as needed. Palpatine’s Sith apprentice, Count Dooku, hired bounty hunters to kill Padmé on behalf of Nute Gunray, who sought vengeance for her repelling his occupation of Naboo in exchange for joining the Separatists. As shown in Attack of the Clones, Gunray ultimately joined Dooku’s Separatist movement despite Padmé’s survival of all assassination attempts.
As shown in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, Padmé was key to Anakin’s fall to the dark side, with his desperation to prevent her death being one of the main reasons he turned against the Jedi Order. If Padmé died early on in Attack of the Clones, however, Palpatine’s plans wouldn’t be ruined, he’d simply alter how he’d manipulate Anakin into falling to the dark side. Anakin would still become Darth Vader, but the Star Wars saga would be significantly different, with his fall perhaps happening earlier (along with the fall of the Jedi and Republic) and his lack of children making it far more difficult to imagine his redemption. Padmé was also a founding member of the Rebellion, and her early demise would impact the faction in this alternate Star Wars timeline.
Anakin obsessed over Padmé in the decade that followed the Invasion of Naboo, so her death, whether on the Coruscant landing platform or in her penthouse, would leave him overcome by grief. Anakin would most likely go against the wishes of the Jedi and pursue Padmé’s killers, and likely slay Zam Wesell and Jango Fett. This wouldn’t be easy, since the latter is both the galaxy’s deadliest bounty hunter and an experienced Jedi-killer, but the enraged Anakin would likely still prevail. With Padmé dead, the cause of Anakin’s fall wouldn’t center on her, but rather the Separatist Crisis and Clone Wars and her death making the Republic and Jedi seem inept. Palpatine would, of course, use Padmé as a martyr, showing the galaxy writ large and Anakin in particular that the Separatists must be stopped through military might.
Palpatine never planned for Shmi Skywalker to be kidnapped and killed by Tusken Raiders (though deleted Revenge of the Sith dialogue nearly made Dooku responsible for it), but her death nevertheless led to Anakin taking a major step towards his fall to the dark side. In this hypothetical version of Attack of the Clones where Padmé died, Anakin would likely still be plagued by nightmares and discover his dying mother on Tatooine, which would make his dissatisfaction with the Jedi even worse, making them appear to be incapable of protecting those he loved. Anakin would still tell Palpatine about these tragic events, which he’d use to further manipulate Anakin to despise the Jedi and isolate him. With Padmé and his mother gone and Obi-Wan being part of the Jedi Order he’s starting to loathe so much, Anakin would likely trust and confide in no one but Palpatine.
The Jedi would discover the Clone Army on Kamino sooner or later, and Anakin’s vengeful pursuit of Padmé’s killers might make him the Jedi who discovers the Republic’s army. With his faith in the Jedi at an all-time low and his desire to stop the Separatists stronger than ever, Anakin would be all too eager to accept the Clone Army on behalf of the Jedi and perhaps the Republic as well, if he contacted Palpatine with his findings instead of the Jedi Council. With the Separatist Crisis’ escalation into the Clone Wars being inevitable, Anakin would enter the war far closer to falling to the dark side than he did in canon and Legends.
The Clone Wars would need to drag on for years and allow Palpatine to consolidate power as he gradually turns the Republic into an authoritarian regime, but once Anakin becomes powerful enough to kill Count Dooku, he’d be ready to take his place as a Sith Lord. With Anakin’s increased rage and disillusionment at the start of the war, he’d likely reach this point far earlier, killing Dooku and replacing him at Palpatine’s side in less than three years, allowing his new master to enact Order 66 earlier as well.
In canon and Legends, Anakin resigns himself to his new identity as Darth Vader and his position within the Galactic Empire, broken by the price he paid for embracing the dark side of the Force. Had Padmé died in Attack of the Clones and Anakin fell to the dark side much earlier, he’d be far more enthusiastic about the autocratic regime he’s second-in-command of. In this scenario, Darth Vader might not have sustained his horrific injuries on Mustafar and wouldn’t have the enhanced strength of his cybernetic life-support suit as a result (nor the pain-induced heightened connection to the dark side), but he’d be a much more fervent leader in the Empire.
Padmé was, in a way, a founding member of the Rebel Alliance in canon and Legends, helping to form the Delegation of 2000 which began as a contingent of politicians who were concerned by the Republic’s freefall into authoritarianism. They eventually evolved into Star Wars' Rebel Alliance, which consolidated disparate rebel movements across the galaxy under the shared desire to restore the Galactic Republic and its democracy. Padmé also advised members of the Delegation to feign loyalty to the Empire immediately upon its establishment, but quietly grow the Rebel movement over time. Without Padmé to provide this direction, Rebel leaders like Mon Mothma and Bail Organa might be arrested or executed early on in the Empire’s reign, leading the eventual Rebellion to be far less of a threat to Palpatine’s regime.
With Padmé dead, Darth Vader would likely never fall in love again and not have any children as a result. As shown in Return of the Jedi, Luke Skywalker was essential to Darth Vader’s redemption. In both canon and Legends, other Force users have tried to appeal to the good in Vader, but none of these attempts were successful. Without Luke, it’s difficult to imagine anyone bringing him back from the dark side.
Obi-Wan Kenobi, meanwhile, would likely still lay low during the reign of the Empire, though not on Tatooine. Kenobi might also train a young Force-sensitive as a Jedi when the time is right, but they likely wouldn’t be capable of defeating or redeeming Vader, making this Star Wars saga far bleaker. There is a possibility that Vader would discover Palpatine’s indirect involvement in Padmé’s Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones death, however, which would lead him to turn on his master, possibly killing him and becoming the Galactic Empire’s new Emperor in the process.
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