Clive Revill, Emperor Palpatine actor in ‘Star Wars’, dead at 94
Actor Clive Revill, who voiced Emperor Palpatine in the original Star Wars, has died aged 94.
The New Zealand-born actor’s death has been confirmed by his daughter, Kate Revill, who revealed to The Hollywood Reporter that her father passed away in a care facility in Sherman Oaks on March 11th, 2025.
Revill’s acting career began in 1950 when he moved to London to study his craft at the Old Vic Theatre. Only two years later, he made his Broadway debut in The Pickwick Papers. He was later nominated for a Tony Award for his Broadway portrayal of Fagin in Oliver and his performance as Bob-Le-Hotu in Irma la Douce.
The late actor also had a strong relationship with the celebrated filmmaker Billy Wilder, appearing in The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes and Avanti!, the latter of which secured Revill a Golden Globe nomination for his portrayal of a hotel manager.
He is best known for voicing Emperor Palpatine in 1980’s Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back after previously working with director Irvin Kershner on 1966’s A Fine Madness.
Revill reflected on the opportunity during an interview with The Spectrum in 2015, stating, “I got a call from the director, Irvin Kershner, who I’d worked with on A Fine Madness. He needed a voice for the Emperor who would be only appearing as a holographic image. So I tried it several times and found it worked best with no emotion whatsoever.”
His voice was later replaced by Ian McDiarmid, who became the actor behind Emperor Palpatine in the next three Star Wars movies, but this didn’t upset Revill. “I was the original Emperor, but they wanted continuity with the later movies. They made a good choice with McDiarmid,” he said.
Revill is survived by his daughter Kate and granddaughter Kayla.
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