Natalie Portman's Queen Padmé Amidala played a vital role in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, but didn't live to witness the events of A New Hope and beyond after passing away while giving birth to twins Luke and Leia at the end of Revenge of the Sith.
Amidala's death is what ultimately pushed Anakin Skywalker to fully abandon the path of the Jedi and allow himself to be consumed be the Dark Side of the Force.
The Disney+ Star Wars shows have allowed us to revisit earlier timelines in the Galaxy Far, Far Away, and though we have seen both Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen reprise their respective roles as Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin/Darth Vader, Padme has yet to make an appearance. She has showed up in The Clone Wars animated series and several Star Wars novels, but we haven't seen her in live-action since ROTS.
Honestly, the character wasn't really required for the story the Obi-Wan Kenobi series was telling, and it's difficult to imagine any new spin-off or prequel focusing on Padmé. Even so, Portman has often said that she would "be open" to reprising the role, and we're now hearing that she's actually in talks to return.
After previously reporting that McGregor, Christensen and Ariana Greenblatt (who played young Ahsoka Tano in season 1) are set to return for the second season of Ahsoka, Kristian Harloff believes that Portman is also "close to reaching a deal" to reprise her role as the former ruler of Naboo.
How Amidala would factor into this story obviously remains to be seen, but there's speculation that she could appear via the World Between Worlds, the realm where Ahsoka encountered her old Jedi Master Skywalker in the first season. She could also feature in a more conventional flashback, of course.
Production on Ahsoka season 2 is scheduled to get underway later this year. The main cast members are all expected to return, with Game of Thrones alum Rory McCann inheriting the role of Baylan Skoll from the late Ray Stevenson.
UPDATE: StarWars.net's sources are saying that Portman is not in talks at this time.
Set after the fall of the Empire, Ahsoka follows the former Jedi knight Ahsoka Tano as she investigates an emerging threat to a vulnerable galaxy.
The series stars Rosario Dawson in the title role, with Natasha Liu Bordizzo as Sabine Wren, Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Hera Syndulla, Diana Lee Inosanto as Morgan Elsbeth, Ivanna Sakhno as Shin Hati, Ray Stevenson as Baylan Skoll, David Tennant as Huyang, Lars Mikkelsen as Grand Admiral Thrawn, with Eman Esfandi appearing as Ezra Bridger.
Kevin Kiner was announced as the series' composer.
Ahoska is written by executive producer Dave Filoni, alongside executive producers Favreau, Kennedy, Wilson, and Beck. Gilchrist is co-executive producer. The series’ directors include Filoni, Steph Green, Peter Ramsey, Jennifer Getzinger, Geeta Vasant Patel and Rick Famuyiwa.
All episodes are now streaming on Disney+.