The Emperor is going to play a key figure in the upcoming Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker , and his shadow looms large over the movie (especially if the new poster revealed at D23 Expo 2019 is any indication).

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Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - Official Photos Released 18 IMAGES

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IGN caught up with the stars of the movie -- Daisy Ridley, John Boyega and Kelly Marie Tran -- following their D23 panel presentation to discuss why it was important the Emperor (or at least some version of) be resurrected for the conclusion of the Skywalker Saga. You can watch the full interviews above.UPDATE: In addition, Disney released the Rise of the Skywalker D23 footage online, which you can watch below:"He's the biggest baddie in Star Wars history. Now that we've done the story, I'm like, it couldn't have happened any other way," said Ridley. "It had to be that. But he's very instrumental to the plot of the film. It's not just like he appears again; it's all explained."Boyega similarly thinks that the Emperor's significance between the larger Star Wars lore made him pivotal to the culmination of the Skywalker Saga. "I think the Emperor and his doctrine has trickled down to so many of the characters in the Star Wars universe," said Boyega. "The Dark Side, it is what it is because of a lot of his actions and plans. To have him come back, he's like the greatest foe, the greatest enemy. I mean, we might as well take him down properly."Tran offered an interesting tease that the Emperor storyline ties back to her favorite Star Wars theme, "redemption." Stopping herself before she gave away any more, Tran left it out there that redemption will be a key facet of how he fits into the larger The Rise of Skywalker story.When we asked Ridley what her reaction to finding out the end of her Star Wars trilogy was, she answered simply: "I think it's awesome." "When we were doing it, I kept going, 'Oh my god, this is so cool.' And that's nice to be in a film where you're actually saying, 'Oh my god, this is so cool," she said.For more on Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker out of D23 Expo, here's our full breakdown of the footage shown during the Disney Theatrical panel, including Rey seemingly going to the Dark Side . We got a chance to ask the cast for more context around that Dark Side Rey reveal , and they teased it completes a "big old journey" for the series.Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker hits theaters on December 20, 2019.

Terri Schwartz is Editor-in-Chief of Entertainment at IGN. Talk to her on Twitter at @Terri_Schwartz