Why Darth Vader is never in Star Wars

Darth Vader is not only one of the most despicable villains in Star Wars (though at least he didn't use the dying screams of Dysonite children to torture people), but also one of the most iconic villains in all of cinema. He is a character instantly recognizable by his silhouette alone; his stiff, expressionless “face” nevertheless offers a rather intense, timeless brow. The guy is just fear incarnate, someone you look at and immediately know is bad news.

Creating an image was not easy, and For Star Wars creator George Lucas, Darth Vader's movement and behavior were key. Of course, the costume did much of the work, as did James Earl Jones' fantastic vocal performance. Be that as it may, David Prowse's physical performance was also essential in making the character a formidable and intimidating presence even when he's barely moving.

Really, if you think about it, Vader barely moves at all in any of his appearances. Sure, he swings a lightsaber and walks heavily, but Vader never really runs. Even in many of the Star Wars video games, he has a slow walk, and no more than forced to get places faster. Why is that? Well, we have some thoughts.

Note that walking rather than running is a pretty classic villain trait. It shows confidence and thus immediately makes the antagonist more menacing. You rarely, if ever, see Jason Voorhees, Michael Mayers, or the T-1000 in The Terminator (which is the scariest Terminator movie to date), so why should Vader be any different? He shouldn't chase his enemies, they should cower at the sight of him and submit to the inevitability of being cut down by Vader. After all, Anakin's last name was Skywalker, not Skyrunner.

Then there are the practical reasons. Much like Batman's costume, Vader's big suit isn't particularly comfortable or practical. Prowse could barely get his arms high in the air because of his Vader outfit, so running around in that outfit would definitely look pretty silly — not to mention the very real possibility of Vader tripping over the long cape. Vader's suit is meant to look cool, not always move well.

However, the most likely cause is also quite simple – lung problems. We all know that Vader needs respiratory assistance, so doing physically draining activities like running could seriously endanger the middle-aged Sith Lord, whose body was severely burned after his mentor and friend left him for dead. Then there's the fact that Vader has not one, but two prosthetic legs, which may not allow for as much mobility.

There is a long-standing theory among certain fans that Vader's suit is not actually cutting edge medical technology, but is instead purposefully designed to keep the Sith Lord from enduring constant pain so that he can never be more powerful than Darth Sidious. According to this theory, Palpatine ensured that his apprentice would not kill him and take over the main role of the Dark Lord, despite it being all Sith style (see also the entire “Rule of Two”.).

In the non-canonical Expanded Universe, or Star Wars Legends, especially in the novel “Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader”, Vader himself states that his mechanical limbs are less advanced than the technology of the time. This means that his master gave him a painful suit so that he would be more in tune with the dark side of the Force due to his anger. (As we all know, fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, and hate leads to suffering.)

However, it no longer exists in the current canon. Now, Vader's suit is clearly the most advanced machine in the galaxy, even though it has to constantly inject Vader with painkillers to ease his pain (from burning in the lava). Vader also comes to embrace the suit and how it isolates him from the rest of the galaxy, allowing him to focus on his anger and hatred to become a more powerful tool of the dark side.

The new Star Wars canon has done a lot to expand and explain Darth Vader, including how his lightsaber was made and how his suit was made, but it is never possible if he has the ability to run more easily. Maybe it's a matter of another unnecessary Disney+ show.