Dark Side (Star Wars) - Prequel Trilogy

Prequel Trilogy

In Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, Yoda explains to a young Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd) that his fear for losing his mother, Shmi (Pernilla August), could lead him to the dark side; he says "Fear leads to anger; anger leads to hate; hate leads to suffering."

In Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, a teenage Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) begins to feel the pull of the dark side when his mother is killed by Tusken Raiders, and he slaughters the entire tribe in a blind rage.

In Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, then-Chancellor Palpatine manipulates Anakin's fear that Padmé, by now his secret wife, will die in childbirth to persuade him into becoming his Sith apprentice. Palpatine first tempts Anakin by challenging the dogmatic view of the world he had learned in the Jedi Temple. When Palpatine promises that the dark side can prevent death, Anakin becomes his Sith apprentice, Darth Vader, and helps the Sith Lord massacre the Jedi and destroy the Galactic Republic. Mad with power, Vader uses the dark side to choke Padmé into unconsciousness when he suspects that she has betrayed him to his former master, Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor). Padme later dies during the birth of their twins (Luke and Leia) of a broken heart, caused by Anakin's descent to the dark side; ironically, the dark side brings on the very tragedy Anakin joined the Sith to prevent.