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| “ | Fear will keep the local systems in line. Fear of this battle station. | „ |
| ~ One of Grand Moff Tarkin's most famous quotes. |
| “ | You may fire when ready. | „ |
| ~ Tarkin ordering the firing of the Death Star's superlaser at planets - one of his most famous quotes, and also his last words. |
| “ | You do not know what it takes to win a war, but I do. | „ |
| ~ Grand Moff Tarkin to Kanan Jarrus. |
Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin, also known as Governor Tarkin, is a major antagonist in the Star Wars franchise.
He is the Imperial governor of the Outer Rim and commander of the Imperial military battle station known as the Death Star. Acting as Darth Vader's superior, he attempted to use the Death Star to destroy the Rebel Alliance to keep the galaxy in line through fear and force.
Portrayals[]
- He was portrayed by the late Peter Cushing in A New Hope (originally titled as just Star Wars), who also played Baron Victor Frankenstein in Hammer Films' Frankenstein film series.
- In Revenge of the Sith, the producers considered using CGI or existing footage to re-create Tarkin, but decided the technology was not advanced enough to make Tarkin look convincing. So instead, Tarkin was portrayed by Wayne Pygram, who also played Scorpius in Farscape.
- In Rogue One, he was portrayed by Guy Henry, with CGI being used to superimpose Cushing's face over Henry's.
- In Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels and Star Wars: The Bad Batch, he was voiced by Stephen Stanton, who also voiced Stinky Pete in the video game adaptation of Toy Story.
- In Star Wars: Empire at Dawn, he was voiced by the late Paul Darrow.
Biography[]
(NOTE: For accuracy reasons, the stories he appeared in were ordered chronologically.)
Star Wars: The Clone Wars[]
Tarkin first met Darth Vader as his past self Anakin Skywalker during the Clone Wars. Prior to the Empire's formation, Tarkin was a Captain in the Republic Navy. He fought in the Clone Wars and was eventually captured by Osi Sobeck of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, along with Even Piell and other Republic Navy personnel in 20 BBY. He later took Barriss Offee into custody once she was responsible for the bombing of the Jedi temple.
Revenge of the Sith[]
After the Clone Wars, he is briefly seen along with Lord Vader and Emperor Palpatine, supervising the construction of the Death Star on board the bridge of a Venator-class Star Destroyer.
Star Wars: The Bad Batch[]
Following the formation of the Empire, he comes to Kamino to shut down the clone development and getting Crosshair reprogrammed to be fully loyal to the Empire. He gets promoted to Governor and orders Vice Admiral Rampart to destroy Tipoca City. A year later, he monitors the scientific advancements of Dr. Royce Hemlock, though Tarkin is unaware of Project Necromancer due to its confidential nature that only concerns Palpatine and Hemlock. Following the destruction of Tantiss Base and the death of Hemlock at the hands of Clone Force 99, Tarkin shuts down the facility and redirects the funds to Project Stardust.
Star Wars Rebels[]
Some years later during the era of the Empire, Tarkin became Grand Moff and traveled to the planet Lothal to find a way to hunt the rebels of the planet. He worked with Grand Admiral Thrawn in finding out the location of the Rebels from Kanan Jarrus. He notably shows support for Thrawn's TIE Defender Project.
Rogue One[]
Tarkin in Rogue One.Sometime later, after Imperial Director Orson Krennic has succeeded in building the Death Star, Tarkin arrived on the station to have its powers demonstrated to him. Nearing the planet Jedha, Krennic offers to use the Death Star to destroy the entire moon. However, Tarkin tells him to merely use a low-powered blast on the planet's capital Jedha City.
After the Death Star used a single ignition blast to annihilate the capital and the nearby area, killing everyone and obliterating everyone in the radius. Tarkin was impressed by the exhibition and reveals to Krennic that he will be taking command of the station as of now, silently intending to use the security breach under Krennic's command as a pretext to get him removed from his position. He also tells Krennic to spread the story that Jedha City was destroyed in a mining accident, as he does not want the Senate to find out the details of the Death Star’s first test to spare any conflict.
When the Imperial base on Scarif (where all information on the Death Star is stored) is attacked by rebels, Tarkin orders the jump to hyperspace. He ultimately failed to prevent Rebel maverick Jyn Erso (the protagonist of the film) from retrieving the plans and sending them to the nearby Rebel fleet before confronting Krennic. Arriving in the moment of the Rebels' moment of triumph, Tarkin activates the Death Star to destroy the Imperial base on Scarif in order to prevent any information leak, which ultimately kills all the remaining Rebels and Imperial forces (including Jyn and Krennic).
Despite having destroyed the base, Tarkin is furious to hear that the plans have fallen to Rebel's hands' thanks to Jyn's efforts.
A New Hope[]
Shortly after the plans are sent to the rebels, Grand Moff Tarkin is determined to get back at them. He later appears with Darth Vader at a meeting of the joint chiefs, where they find General Tagge and Admiral Motti were arguing over the theft of the plans by the Rebellion. Tarkin announced to the joint chiefs that the Emperor had just dissolved the Senate and left the power to all regional governors of the systems, and that fear of the Death Star would keep the population in line.
When Vader warned the chiefs about the station's power being insignificant compared to the Force, Motti mocked Vader for his “sorcerer’s” ways. Vader responded by using the Force to choke Motti. Knowing full well that Vader fully would have killed Motti, Tarkin ordered Vader to let go of him to prevent any further scrutiny. Vader reluctantly did as was commanded and released Motti when ordered a second time by Tarkin. With this, Tarkin put an end to the pointless bickering, saying that Lord Vader would retrieve the plans and that the Death Star would crush the Rebellion.
Tarkin and Lord Vader hold Leia Organa captive on board the Death Star: where they attempt to interrogate her to reveal the location of the Rebel Base. After Leia resists their mind probe, Tarkin decides to take a more drastic approach. After calling Leia to his chamber and they exchange words regarding her death sentence, he makes clear that he fully maintains his intent to milk from her the location of the Rebel Base. To coerce Leia into cooperation, he threatens to use the Death Star to destroy her home planet of Alderaan as a demonstration of its might. Leia informs Tarkin of Alderaan’s lack of Military resistance and begs him to change his decision. The ruthless Tarkin, unfortunately, remains unmoved and only gives her the option to request another target. Otherwise unbudging on his terms and now furious with Leia’s added silence, he urges she give him the Rebel Base location. Leia ultimately caved to Tarkin’s excessive measures and tells him the base was on the planet of Dantooine. Tarkin decides to destroy Alderaan anyway, having in mind she wasn’t truthful with him. He reassures Leia with the threat that he will “deal with her rebel friends" later, clarifying his leeriness by deeming Dantooine too remote to make an appropriate demonstration.
After the truth is revealed that the rebel base was not at Dantooine, Tarkin plans to have Leia killed. However, after the Millennium Falcon lands in one of the Death Star bays, Vader convinces Tarkin to wait as he feels the presence of his old master Obi-Wan Kenobi. Tarkin reassures him that the Jedi are extinct, despite Vader informing that Obi-Wan and many other Jedi survived Order 66. Tarkin demands that Obi-Wan not be allowed to escape, to which Vader assures him that Obi-Wan isn't planning to escape and that he must face him alone.
After Princess Leia is rescued by Luke Skywalker and Han Solo while Obi-Wan sacrifices himself to let them escape, Tarkin has the Death Star follow the Millennium Falcon thanks to a signal beacon planted on the Falcon before they escaped. They go to the Yavin system, where he plots with Vader the destruction of the Rebel base on Yavin 4 once in range.
During the Battle of Yavin, Chief Bast learns from his subordinates that they analyzed the rebels' attack and found there could be a danger. Bast suggests Tarkin to evacuate but Tarkin refuses, confident that the Death Star will annihilate the Rebel base with success. However, Bast's warning is proven correct; Luke uses the Force to guide his proton torpedoes to the exhaust port in order to destroy the Death Star, killing Tarkin and all remaining Imperial personnel on board while Vader survives in his TIE Advanced x1. With Tarkin's death, Alderaan was avenged.
Legacy[]
Following his death with the destruction of the Death Star, a large hole emerged within the Imperial High Command as Tarkin was one of many high-ranking officers of the Imperial Military to have perished in the space station's destruction. Tarkin's death leads to the rise of Cassio Tagge as Grand General who institutes new policies that are meant to make up for the loss of the battle station. Tagge refers to the Death Star as "Tarkin's folly" and seeks to divert resources away from costly battle stations towards constructing more new capital ships and wonders how many Super Star Destroyers could have been produced in place of the Death Star. Darth Vader, who is blamed for the station's destruction, honors Tarkin posthumously for his vision and opposes Tagge's policies and more practical methods.
Tarkin would be reviled by the Rebel Alliance and later the New Repulic as a vile war criminal who was one of the worst people in the Imperial regime. His actions with the destruction of Alderaan were used by the rebellion as propaganda to rally more support and the planet's destruction unintentionally rallied more to the rebel cause, just as Leia had predicted. Thirty years later, the Galactic Empire is succeeded by the First Order and Tarkin would be honored by them as a heroic figure with his name being placed on the insignias of majors in the First Order military along with other Imperial Military leaders who were labeled heroes of the Galactic Civil War.
Personality[]
| “ | Tarkin, if ever there was a shred of humanity in you or these twisted creatures of yours, it's dead now. You're at war with life itself. You are enemies of the universe… your Empire is doomed. | „ |
| ~ Princess Leia Organa after Grand Moff Tarkin wipes out Alderaan. |
Wilhuff Tarkin was an extremely power-hungry, manipulative, relentless, calculating, intense, sly, and ruthless, and cruel man who was known for his sharp memory. Since he was a child, he was taught by his family that life was a constant struggle for survival and that the strong and intelligent should be in command of the weak. He never forgot a favor or a slight and he even was capable of recalling people from meetings that took place over a decade before, including he had only met them once. For example, when Cienna Ree greeted him in the Death Star, he was easily able to recognize her from the encounter he had with her when she was a child.
After Princess Leia has been captured by the Empire and has been brought onto the Death Star, Tarkin with his snarling anger finally manages to bully and coerce her into telling him the location of the rebel base, threatening Leia's home planet Alderaan. After Leia lies to him by telling him that the base is on Dantooine, Tarkin makes a prime demonstration of his cruelty by destroying Alderaan anyway under the pretext that Dantooine is too remote for an effective demonstration. With this display of Tarkin’s inhuman sadism, he callously destroyed Alderaan: killing billions and remaining entirely unmoved at Leia’s utter despair. When he becomes fully aware that Leia lied to him, Tarkin orders her immediate execution. He then has the Death Star take a course on Yavin 4 where he intends to wipe out the rebels once and for all.
Tarkin is a delusional, impatient, brutal, and immeasurably cruel warlord. He had an entire planet with two billion people on it obliterated just to serve as a demonstration, he slowly boiled a crew of space pirates and their queen to death using the heat of a star and ordered the destruction of any ships that tried to rescue them while broadcasting their screams across the galaxy, and he had many people tortured and executed throughout the decades. He was well liked by Palpatine, who admired him for his ruthless, brutal nature. Palpatine even gave him authority to command Vader while he was on the Death Star, even though Vader technically outranked Tarkin as the Emperor's second in command. Tarkin was also a horrendous boss. He had countless of his own troops killed to destroy the Scarif facility, and he had many of his men ejected into space after they hesitated to fire on Alderaan, stating he would not hesitate to destroy his own planet if ordered to. He also had many innocent people tortured and executed during the Antar Atrocity, with no regard to which members of the populace had been loyal to the Republic and which were innocent.
Out of all the Empire's officers, Tarkin was easily one of the most irredeemably monstrous. In addition to having likely caused far more deaths than even Vader, the revelation of Tarkin’s needlessly heinous demonstration towards Leia even shocks Palpatine once he learns of it. Having been evil just as natural as breathing, it was he who also laid out the Empire's morale of "rule through fear". He was also the one who was the most feared outside of Vader. Ironically, despite his intelligence and ruthlessness, he was known to make poor decisions, such as throwing away countless of his own troops and refusing to evacuate the Death Star despite the odds. He was rather overconfident. He did have some limits though, as expanded material reveals that he refused to try to overthrow the emperor despite having the Death Star, having determined that even with it, he stood no chance.
Despite his absolutely monstrous nature, Tarkin used to have some standards back when he was younger. Though he was willing to sentence Ahsoka Tano with the death penalty if he found her guilty of the bombing at the Jedi Temple hangar, Tarkin was shown to be horrified upon realizing that Barriss Offee was the one responsible for the bombing and not Ahsoka. Likewise, when he learned that the citizens of Salient II had burnt their houses and fled the system, he expressed his hopes that they had taken their pets with them. He was also fond of his own homeworld and his uncle Jova. That said, it's unknown when and why Tarkin disposed of all his positive and redeeming qualities to turn into the genocidal monster he became in the last years of his life. Thus, one might assume that he let his thirst for power consume him completely and get in the way of the morals he once had.
Relationships[]
Darth Vader[]
Tarkin and Anakin developed a mutual respect for each other due to the fact both were hardliners, and Anakin was the only Jedi to whom Tarkin showed any form of respect, regarding them as an archaic sect whose code kept them from doing what was necessary to win the Clone Wars. This became strained after Anakin's padawan Ahsoka Tano was framed by Barriss Offee for the bombing of the Jedi Temple and murder of a conspirator in the custody of the Republic military. Anakin saw right away that Ahsoka had been framed and had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time, but Tarkin refused to even see this and viciously and relentlessly prosecuted Ahsoka, despite the fact that the evidence against was only circumstantial.
After Anakin became Darth Vader, Tarkin was the first to meet the newborn Sith Lord. Tarkin first met Vader after the Emperor placed him in charge of the construction of the first Death Star. They began working together after some lost Jedi were traced to Kashyyyk. Tarkin urged Vader to let the Jedi land on the world so they could use their presence as a pretext to invade the planet and enslave the Wookies so they could be used to help construct the Death Star. Tarkin was impressed by Vader's leadership during the Subjugation of Kashyyyk and asked the Emperor if he could call on Vader's services when he needed them.
Although Tarkin had a good working relationship with Vader, whom he found efficient and considered an ally in the Imperial hierarchy, he was also unsettled by Vader's supernatural powers and mysterious nature and disliked it when Palpatine used Vader as a check on Tarkin himself. Although Tarkin mutually respected Vader, he secretly did not trust or personally like him, possibly because Vader relied heavily on the Force. Tarkin was one of the few people who knew that Anakin Skywalker and Darth Vader were the same people, though he never told Vader that he had deduced his former identity.
Emperor Palpatine[]
Tarkin swore his loyalty to Chancellor Palpatine during the Clone Wars even going as far as to want to give important information to him after being rescued from the Citadel. After the war had ended with the execution of Order 66, the destruction of the Jedi Order, and the dissolution of the Galactic Republic, Tarkin became a high ranking officer within the newly formed Galactic Empire and was present with the Emperor and Vader on a Star Destroyer along with other members of the Imperial Military. Tarkin carried out Palpatine's demands without question during the early rebellions against the Empire and later the Galactic Civil War and was in support of his policies such as the dissolution of the Imperial Senate.
Quotes[]
| “ | Lama Su: Admiral Tarkin, this news is most surprising. Chancellor Palpatine has always supported our cloning advancements in the past. Tarkin: Emperor Palpatine's priorities have changed. With the war at an end, the need for future clones is being questioned. Lama Su: Our contracts stipulate the continued production. Tarkin: Your contracts were with the Republic, which no longer exists. Lama Su: Surely you realize the precarious state this newly formed Empire is in. Clone troopers will be needed to maintain order throughout the galaxy. Tarkin: Indeed. A service conscription soldiers could provide at half the cost. Lama Su: The skill level and efficiency of our clones is far superior to that of any recruited body. Tarkin: I shall be the judge of that, Prime Minister. |
„ |
| ~ Tarkin to Lama Su. |
| “ | Tarkin: The Empire does not tolerate failure, Sergeant. Hunter: There were complications. Tarkin: Yes, the probe droid's report was quite detailed. Conspiring with Saw Gerrera. I assume you know the punishment for treason. Hunter: Treason? Tarkin: Throw them in the brig. |
„ |
| ~ Tarkin to Hunter. |
| “ | Lieutenant: But sir, our own troopers are on that rail line. They could get caught in the crossfire. Tarkin: I am aware. Do it! |
„ |
| ~ Tarkin ordering the Bad Bath's rail line to be shot down, in process also admitting that he does not care about his soldiers |
| “ | Hemlock's failings have cost us enough. Shutter this facility indefinitely, and redistribute all funding to Project Stardust. | „ |
| ~ Tarkin ending Project Necromancer following the failure and death of Royce Hemlock, redirecting the funds to Project Stardust, the future Death Star. |
| “ | Tarkin: Gentlemen. Sit. I understand you have experience dealing with these insurgents. Aresko: Oh, yes, sir. Tarkin: And your efforts have been less than successful? Aresko: W...Well, I, uh I wouldn't say... Tarkin: Commandant, if your efforts had been successful, we would not be having this little chat. Now, when was the last activity reported? Grint: Sir, we, uh, responded personally to an attack last night in one of the outlying towns. Tarkin: And the details of this attack? Aresko: Uh, nothing of note. The insurgents stole some supplies and escaped on speeder bikes. No casualties. Tarkin: Ah, but you see, Commandant, there is something of note in that report "no casualties." Your rebel cell is more principled than others. Grint: Others, sir? You mean there are other cells? Tarkin: Cells, factions, tribes Call them what you will. They lack the one thing that would make them a credible threat to the Empire, unity. While your cell seems uninterested in violence, it does present a specific threat the Jedi. Aresko: We have encountered him, sir, and he lives up to their reputation. Tarkin: Oh, I doubt that very much. But I am not concerned with his skills as a warrior. I am concerned with what he represents. Or perhaps I should say, I am concerned by what you allow him to represent by failing to stop him hope. There are whispers of this alleged Jedi in the streets. In time, such whispers might spark belief in something other than the strength and security of the Empire. And that, gentlemen, is something I cannot have. |
„ |
| ~ Tarkin's heartless nature before he had the Grand Inquisitor execute Grint and Aresko for their repeated failures against the Lothal rebels. |
| “ | Make no mistakes. From now on failure will have consequences. | „ |
| ~ Tarkin warning Agent Kallus and Maketh Tua after Aresko and Grint's execution |
| “ | Tarkin: Your TIE Defender program is at risk. Orson Krennic has been quite persuasive about diverting the funding to his own project: Stardust. Thrawn: The Emperor has assured me that he supports my project. Tarkin: In my view, Director Krennic's project has been nothing but expenses and excuses for years on end. If construction of the Defender is to continue, you must make your case directly to the Emperor himself. I have already arranged the meeting. Thrawn: I'll leave immediately, Moff Tarkin. |
„ |
| ~ Tarkin to Thrawn. |
| “ | Tarkin: Most unfortunate about the security breach on Jedha, Director Krennic. After so many setbacks and delays, and now this. We’ve heard word of rumors circulating through the city. Apparently you’ve lost a rather talkative cargo pilot. If the Senate gets wind of our project, countless systems will flock to the Rebellion. Orson Krennic: When the battle station is finished, Governor Tarkin, the Senate will be of little concern. Tarkin: When has become now, Director Krennic. The Emperor will tolerate no further delay, you have made time an ally of the Rebellion. I suggest, we solve both problems simultaneously with an immediate test of the weapon. Failure will find you explaining why to a far less patient audience. Orson Krennic: I will not fail. |
„ |
| ~ Tarkin to Krennic. |
| “ | Tarkin: I believe I owe you an apology, Director Krennic. Your work exceeds all expectations. Orson Krennic: And you'll tell the Emperor as much? Tarkin: I will tell him his patience with your misadventures… has been rewarded with a weapon that will bring a swift end to the Rebellion. Orson Krennic: And that that was only an inkling of it's destructive potential. Tarkin: I will tell him that I will be taking control over the weapon… I first spoke of years ago effective immediately. Orson Krennic: (Scoffs) We stand here amidst MY achievement! Not yours! Tarkin: I'm afraid the recent security breaches… have laid bare your inadequacies as a military director. Orson Krennic: The breaches have been filled. Jedha has been silenced. Tarkin: You think this pilot acted alone? He was dispatched from the installation on Eadu… Galen Erso's facility. Orson Krennic: Oh, we'll see about this. |
„ |
| ~ Tarkin takes control of the Death Star. |
| “ | The Imperial Senate will no longer be of any concern to us. I've just received word that the Emperor has dissolved the council permanently. The last remnants of the Old Republic have been swept away. | „ |
| ~ Tarkin announces the disbanding of the Senate to gathered Imperial leaders. |
| “ | This bickering is pointless! Lord Vader will provide us with the location of the Rebel fortress by the time this station is operational. We will then crush the Rebellion with one swift stroke! | „ |
| ~ Tarkin, apparently having heard enough of the Galactic Empire's bickering. |
| “ | Since you are reluctant to provide us with the location of the Rebel base, I have chosen to test this station's destructive power on your home planet of Alderaan. | „ |
| ~ Tarkin to Princess Leia. |
| “ | Where is the Rebel base? | „ |
| ~ Tarkin interrogating Leia. |
| “ | You're far too trusting. Dantooine is too remote to make an effective demonstration, but don’t worry, we will deal with your Rebel friends soon enough. | „ |
| ~ Tarkin to Leia before destroying Alderaan anyway. |
| “ | Evacuate? In our moment of triumph? I think you overestimate their chances! | „ |
| ~ Tarkin arrogantly dismisses his lieutenant's plea to evacuate the Death Star. |
Trivia[]
- Peter Cushing got along quite well with both Darth Vader's suit actor David Prowse and Princess Leia's actress Carrie Fisher. Fisher later said she found it difficult to act as though she hated Tarkin due to how much she liked Cushing. To do so, she had to think of another person. Mark Hamill was also a great fan of Cushing despite them not having any scenes together.
- In Revenge of the Sith, George Lucas briefly considered using CGI and existing footage of Cushing to recreate Tarkin before deciding the footage wasn't good enough nor was the technology quite advanced enough yet. He instead cast a heavily made-up Wayne Pygram as Tarkin due to Pygram's strong resemblance to Cushing. In 2015, director Gareth Edwards felt the technology had advanced far enough to use CGI to superimpose Cushing's face over Tarkin actor Guy Henry's face in the film Rogue One. Cushing's family was heavily involved in the recreation of CGI Tarkin and provided input to Rogue One producers.
- After Anakin Skywalker's transformation into Darth Vader, Tarkin suspected that Skywalker had become Vader but was never able to confirm it (even though he was right). Likewise, Tarkin suspected that Emperor Palpatine was a Sith, but was unable to confirm that as well.
- His crime of destroying Alderaan is one of, if not the most infamous example of crossing the moral event horizon.
- Tarkin's name and personality may be based on Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, the last (albeit legendary) king of Rome.
- Notably, both Tarquin and Tarkin were tyrannical leaders who ultimately ended up destroying the very things they served (Tarquin's rule ended up angering the populace, causing the kingdom to become a republic, while Tarkin's destruction of Alderaan helped to ultimately destroy the Empire) Both also focused on ruling via fear and military force.
External Links[]
- Grand Moff Tarkin on the Pure Evil Wiki
- Wilhuff Tarkin on the Wookieepedia Wiki
- Wilhuff Tarkin on the Clone Wars Wiki
- Wilhuff Tarkin on the Disney Wiki
- Grand Moff Tarkin — Wikipedia
