Star Wars Reveals The Future Of Rise Of Skywalker's Sith Planet, Exegol

Summary Despite the Resistance's victory on Exegol, the fate of Palpatine's followers and the future of Exegol remain uncertain.

A new upcoming Star Wars book reveals details about Exegol's fate, hinting at the heroes' struggle with the dark side.

Studying the dark side on Exegol poses a threat, emphasizing the dangers faced by archaeologists like Beaumont Kin.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker ends with a climactic battle against Palpatine's Final Order on the Sith Planet of Exegol, and Star Wars has finally revealed new information on the future of this dark side world. Although Rey and the Resistance emerged victorious, the movie's sudden resolution of the First Order-Resistance War left many questions unanswered, especially since the galaxy has gone through this before. Return of the Jedi also ended with Palpatine's death, the Empire's defeat, and the birth of a New Republic, but the Star Wars sequel trilogy showed that these victories didn't last long.

This makes it unclear if Palpatine is gone for good, and it was never shown how many of his followers survived the Battle of Exegol. However, an upcoming Star Wars book contains information that may answer some of these questions and foreshadow Exegol's future. It also hints at the heroes of the sequel trilogy succumbing to the dark side in the aftermath of their victory at Exegol. This information could lead into Rey's New Jedi Order movie as she struggles to overcome her dark legacy and help lead the galaxy into a new era.

Archaeologists Are Studying Palpatine & The Sith At Exegol

Star Wars has confirmed that archaeologists have begun to study Exegol in the aftermath of the Final Order's defeat in The Rise of Skywalker. The upcoming book Star Wars: The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire by Chris Kempshall will cover the Empire's full history, from its rise during the prequel era to its fall and attempted rebirth in the original and sequel eras, respectively. The Amazon UK listing features an official excerpt from the book's second chapter, written from an in-universe perspective by Dominic Monaghan's character, Beaumont Kin:

However, understandings of the past change. The details that have been retrieved from within the archives of both the Empire and the records of the First Order can, when combined with the new material being uncovered on Exegol, help tell a different story about the Clone Wars.

This sentence implies that the First Order was fully defeated in The Rise of Skywalker, as the heroes possess their records. It also means there are no surviving Final Order forces on Exegol that pose a threat to the archaeologists studying the Sith ruins on the planet's surface. However, the Empire and the Sith returned after their defeat at the Battle of Endor, meaning they could be waiting for another chance to strike back. Even if they have been defeated, Beaumont Kin and his team face another challenge that has plagued many characters throughout the Star Wars franchise.

Related The First Order Timeline Explained: The Resistance & The Return Of Palpatine The sequel Star Wars trilogy only lasted two years, but the era of the First Order and the Resistance who rose to meet it had a much longer timeline.

Studying The Dark Side Is Very Dangerous Indeed

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Star Wars has proven countless times that studying the dark side is always dangerous, even with good intentions. Rey was tempted by the dark side multiple times in The Rise of Skywalker: Kylo Ren pushed her to use Force Lightning for the first time, she encountered a dark side vision of herself in the ruins of the second Death Star, and her grandfather nearly manipulated her into taking his place. Decades before that, Palpatine converted Anakin Skywalker to the dark side by tempting him with knowledge that could save his wife, leading to the rise of Darth Vader and the Empire.

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Beaumont Kin and the other archaeologists on Exegol may not be Force-sensitive, but the dark side can find a way to use anyone. Rogue archaeologist Doctor Chelli Aphra helped Darth Vader during the Galactic Civil War, and even after cutting ties with the Sith Lord, she continued to pursue Force-related artifacts and nearly unleashed great evils on the galaxy. The archaeologists may be studying Exegol to learn more about Star Wars history, but if they fail to learn from it, the Sith may return after Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

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