^Not to mention that the "Darth Plagueis"-novel (albeit Legends but why should it be different in Canon?) describes him as a quite handsome, charming fellow in his youth. I don't really get why people freak out at the thought of Palpatine siring children in the usual way. As hard as it is to believe, that guy was once young, too, lol.

Though maybe he thought that cloning himself gave him the opportunity of being able to control (at least somewhat) the outcomes of his reproduction methods

(Edit: the comment this reply was directed to was edited, so this comment doesn't make a lot of sense anymore)

^Not to mention in addition to his charms and handsome face he was the most powerful and wealthy man in the galaxy. Even while he wasn't young, he shouldn't have had too much trouble in that regard.

Re his cloning, I suppose that he would need a replacement vessel that he definitely knew was capable of containing his immense spirit. Any 'weaker' vessel would likely have been burned through in a matter of moments. At least that's my head-canon.

^ Your headcanon is actually the mainstream theory among fans that “complements” the scarce information Episode IX delivers about Sidious’ cloning process.

As an addendum to both your comment and Saga’s: the main difference imo between Palpatine’s Dark Empire and TRoS is that the cloning process in the movie is much more difficult and complex than in the comic. In DE, Sidious can switch of bodies as randomly as I could switch of clothes. There is a moment in which Luke is destroying all Sidious’ clone bodies as fast as he can, until only one is left, and it is the one Sidious got. And what is more bewildering, he just got out from his bacta tank, and in “birth suit”, duels with Luke Skywalker and even wins (for real, the body just woke up and was already able to fight? Lol).

Meanwhile, in TRoS, is implicitly implied that cloning Forceful beings is hard as hell, specially someone like Sidious’, whose dark side energy is of such scope that no regular clone would be able to sustain it. Moreover, he’s only able to transfer his essence into a body that shares his DNA (something that in DE was irrelevant, since he wanted to posses Anakin Solo’s fetus, lol). As a matter of fact, the first clone that looked normal and more or less like him, he used to another experiment, some kind of plan B: if he wasn’t being able to get a good vessel by unnatural means, than why not trying by natural ways? That’s when Rey’s father “enters in the chat”. And in that regard, he (Sidious) was successful.

Nevertheless, the main detail in all this is that the film doesn’t make it explicit that Rey’s father is actually a clone. That information was only given through the novelization. And that’s why until the moment the book came out, everyone was speculating with whom Palpatine could have sired a child. And that’s when my headcanon enters. Because just like Saga Seeker said, if we count the films only (excluding Episode IX) and, if you wish, TCW (basically George Lucas canon), the idea of Sidious having “someone else” sounds ludicrous and inconceivable. But if we add Darth Plagueis to the equation (as well as any other Legends media pre-Imperial Era in which he appears) that idea is not only reasonable but even welcome. It’s not uncommon for psychopaths having families for their own long-term benefit and personal goals, but not because they truly care, because they can’t, since they’re messed up people.

Concluding, I really don’t like the idea of Rey’s father being a clone. Using cloning as plot convenience to explain those things seems lazy to me, it’s becoming worn out already. Besides, it’s not organic. Not to mention that making Rey’s father Sidious’ real son would open a lot of doors to potential storytelling with dark tones that could only enrich the Canon continuity (which is basically the fanfic I’d like to write about it). As I cited above, that information is only given in the novelization, thus it could be retconned at any moment. That’s why I’m so hyped up for Shadow of the Sith, even though I’m aware that would be unlikely, lol.

^Very interesting explanation.

(By the way, you're writing/planning to write a fanfiction? Are you going to publish the link to it somewhere when it's finished?)

^ Yes. I’ve been planning on writing that fanfic since forever. But due to my lack of organization (and also a little of courage, ngl), I’ve delayed its release until now. The whole plot is ready in my head, I just need the patience to write it down (which is about what I mentioned in my previous comment: Rey’s father being Sheev’s real son). And yes, I’ll share the link here once is done. Ain’t saying when that’s gonna be, but I’ll make sure to add your name on my list of dedicatees, lol.

Nah I’m okay with how it turned out it kinda flipped the dynamic a little having Rey being the granddaughter of one of the most vile people in the galaxy and having her defy that is cool and that she chose to be a ultimately a hero who came from humble origins of being a scavenger.

It would make a great film horrible.

@SagaSeeker Personally, I think it's more interesting for Palpatine to be so incredibly narcissistic to point of never wanting to engage in the act with anyone. Plus, I feel he would've had to have been older to sire a son that would be Rey's father.

^ if human biology in the Star Wars universe is the same as irl then palps could have gotten to work on having a child at any point in his life really so long as he was still capable so he could have been a lot older In his life and still although it would be unlikely conceive a kid

^^^^^Sounds good. I'm looking forward to it, then :) And I'm honored about the dedication

@Grimlord31 You mean he wouldn't want to procreate with anybody because he regards everybody else as inferior to him and thinks he's "too good" for them? That's an interesting thought, however, I could imagine Palpatine being ambitious enough to actually enter (short-term?) relationships in order to get an heir. I personally never really had the impression that he ever considered himself too good to do something that could help him gain or keep power. And, after all, Sith can engage in physical pleasure like anybody else, I guess; so, I wouldn't really imagine him being appalled by the thought of having sexual intercourse with somebody, especially not when he was still younger and a "mere" senator. He wouldn't even have to be in a longterm relationship in order to reach his goals although, as Ajj pointed out, he would've probably managed to "handle" it without messing up