Midi-chlorian

The term midi-chlorian was the scientific designation for a species of microscopic, sentient organisms residing within the cells of all living beings. Their presence was fundamental to the all-encompassing energy field known as the Force, acting as a bridge between the Living Force and the Cosmic Force. By connecting these two facets of the Force, midi-chlorians facilitated the possibility of achieving immortality following death. Through extensive training and complete immersion in the light side of the Force, individuals who had passed on could maintain their identity as a Force spirit after merging with the Force.

Midi-chlorians also shared a symbiotic relationship with their organic hosts, especially pronounced in Force-sensitive individuals, who had a greater concentration of midi-chlorians in their cells. This mutually beneficial connection enabled the midi-chlorians to convey the will of the Force to their Force-sensitive partners, who could then tap into the powers of the Force through the midi-chlorians. The more of these microscopic entities that an individual possessed, the higher their potential for Force abilities. While an average being had roughly 2,500 midi-chlorians in each cell, Force-sensitive beings had at least 4,000 to 5,000.

Scientific examination of blood samples was the method used to detect midi-chlorians in a life form. Specifically, the analysis aimed to determine the quantity of midi-chlorians present within the living cells of the subject, which in turn indicated the inherent strength of their connection to the Force. During the Republic Era, the Jedi Order documented approximately twenty thousand as the highest known midi-chlorian concentration in any life form. This record was superseded by the discovery of Anakin Skywalker, whose midi-chlorian count surpassed that of all Jedi, including Grand Master Yoda.

A microscopic species, serving as the connection between the Living Force found within all life and the limitless Cosmic Force, originated from the Wellspring of Life, a mystical world situated at the center of the galaxy. This birthplace was also the foundation of life itself, with all living organisms acting as symbiotic hosts for the life forms originating from the wellspring. Modern science has given these intelligent microbes the name "midi-chlorians."

Both the Jedi and the Sith were aware of the existence of midi-chlorians. Prospective initiates within the Jedi Order underwent blood testing to estimate their midi-chlorian count. Jedi philosophy also held that midi-chlorians were the basis of all life, meaning that life could not exist without them.

In 32 BBY, Qui-Gon Jinn, a Jedi Master, encountered Anakin Skywalker, a human child with an extraordinary connection to the Force, who was enslaved on the desert planet of Tatooine. Jinn was intrigued by Skywalker's inherent strength, and his interest grew when the boy's mother, Shmi Skywalker, revealed that her son was born without a biological father. Blood analysis revealed that Skywalker's cells contained over twenty thousand midi-chlorians, a record high for the time. These test results, coupled with Skywalker's unique conception and the return of the Sith, led Jinn to believe that Skywalker was the prophesied Chosen One, destined to eliminate the Sith and restore balance to the Force.

Following Skywalker's liberation, he was brought to the Jedi Grand Temple on Coruscant, the capital of the Galactic Republic, where Jinn hoped to have him trained in the ways of the Force with the approval of the Jedi High Council. Jinn shared the results of Skywalker's blood test with the High Council, along with his belief that Skywalker may have been conceived by the midi-chlorians. Despite initial skepticism towards the unorthodox Jedi Master's claims, the High Council ultimately accepted Skywalker into the Order following the Battle of Naboo.

In 19 BBY, more than a decade after Anakin Skywalker's discovery, Yoda was contacted by the spirit of the deceased Qui-Gon Jinn. At Jinn's urging, Yoda traveled to the planet Dagobah and discovered the origin of the midi-chlorians. There, he learned of their role as the link between the Living Force and the Cosmic Force, a connection embodied by five ethereal beings: Anger, Confusion, Joy, Sadness, and Serenity.

With their assistance, the ancient Jedi Master gained a deeper understanding of the nature of midi-chlorians. Yoda then journeyed to Moraband, the Sith homeworld, where he ultimately triumphed over Darth Sidious, a Sith Lord, in a battle of wills. Having successfully completed his trials, Yoda gained a new ability that he had previously believed impossible: the capacity to retain his consciousness after becoming one with the Force.

As the Clone Wars drew to a close, Skywalker grew fearful of losing his secret wife, Senator Padmé Amidala, due to premonitions of her death during childbirth. Sidious, the Dark Lord of the Sith whom Skywalker knew as Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine, attempted to entice Skywalker to the dark side of the Force by sharing a Sith legend that involved the midi-chlorians. Sidious claimed that Darth Plagueis was a wise and powerful Sith Lord who could use midi-chlorians to create new life, even to the point of preventing death itself. Skywalker ultimately turned against the Jedi, becoming Sidious' Sith apprentice, Darth Vader, in hopes of acquiring Plagueis' knowledge through his new Sith Master. The truth was that Plagueis could influence midi-chlorians to create new life, as he was convinced that science held the key to immortality, but his experiments, despite showing promise, were not fully realized.

During the early Imperial Era, the Advanced Science Division was engaged in a clandestine biological clone research initiative known as Project Necromancer. This project centered on transferring M-counts while preserving the subject's DNA, with the goal of achieving successful M-count replication. The midi-chlorians were obtained from an M-count rich source, and the subject's DNA was kept intact. To overcome the challenges of directly replicating a source's M-count, a transfer binder was employed. Royce Hemlock, the Chief Scientist, contracted elite bounty hunters, such as Cad Bane, to capture high M-count targets for the Empire. These hunters delivered the targets, including children, to Imperial Station 003 above Coruscant, where they were exchanged for credits in the station's hangars before being transported to Tantiss Base for experimentation.

As the New Republic began to rise, a remnant of the Galactic Empire sought to capture Grogu, a Force-sensitive foundling. Penn Pershing, a Doctor within the remnant, extracted blood samples from Grogu, which contained a high concentration of midi-chlorians. However, Grogu's small size limited the amount of genetic material Pershing could safely harvest without endangering the asset's life. Din Djarin, a Mandalorian bounty hunter who had grown fond of the mysterious alien foundling, ultimately rescued Grogu from the remnant.

The loss of Grogu left Pershing with a limited supply of blood samples, which he used for his experiments at the direction of Moff Gideon. Despite promising initial results, the experiment failed because the test subjects rejected the blood transfusion. Pershing reported to Gideon that they needed to obtain more blood samples from the original source to continue the project. The scientist also expressed doubt that they would find another host with a comparable midi-chlorian count, emphasizing Grogu's importance to their program.

In the years following the Battle of Endor, Luke Skywalker, the son of Anakin Skywalker and the last Jedi, learned that midi-chlorians are microscopic organisms that transmit the Force's will to their hosts. He also discovered how the Jedi of the Galactic Republic era used them scientifically to explain why some individuals had a stronger connection to the Force. However, Skywalker was less concerned with the reasons behind his own Force abilities, content with simply knowing that the Force was with him. Nevertheless, he included this information in The Secrets of the Jedi, a book documenting the forgotten history of the Jedi Order.

Skywalker did, however, acknowledge the strength of the Force within his family bloodline, as evidenced by himself, his father, his twin sister, and her son, Princess Leia Organa and Ben Solo. Solo inherited the power of the Skywalker blood, granting him immense raw strength in the Force. Snoke, the Supreme Leader, also had plans for Solo's future, recognizing the potential of the Skywalker heir's bloodline.

Lucasfilm asserts that George Lucas first conceived of midi-chlorians as early as 1977. However, no evidence of this exists prior to the publication of The Making of Star Wars in 2007. According to Jonathan W. Rinzler, the book's author, Lucas added the passage regarding midi-chlorians shortly before the book's release. Lucas integrated the midi-chlorian explanation into the film as part of Anakin Skywalker's journey to comprehend the Force. While discussing the story treatment for 1983's Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi in 1981 (then titled Revenge of the Jedi), particularly the backstory of Anakin (who had been revealed as Darth Vader), Lucas suggested that the principles of being a Jedi could be practiced by "anyone," comparing it to yoga or karate. As documented in Star Wars: The Making of Episode I The Phantom Menace, midi-chlorians were incorporated into the film's narrative in the second screenplay draft, completed around 1995. In an interview with Paul Duncan, author of the Star Wars Archives books, Lucas confirmed that "everyone has the Force" because all living organisms have midi-chlorians within their cells. However, Lucas stated that only those with a sufficient number of midi-chlorians could "have a certain amount of control over our Personal Force and learn how to use it, like the Buddhist practice of being able to walk on hot coals." A different explanation was presented in the Ahsoka episode "Part Three: Time to Fly," released on August 29, 2023 on Disney+, where Ahsoka Tano assured Sabine Wren that she could become a Jedi with proper training, even without being naturally Force-sensitive.

The theme of symbiotic relationships is prevalent throughout The Phantom Menace, and midi-chlorians are a part of this. They were loosely based on mitochondria, organelles that provide energy for cells. Like midi-chlorians, mitochondria are believed to have once been independent organisms that inhabited living cells and have since become integrated into them. Even today, mitochondria exhibit some characteristics of independent life forms, including their own DNA. Lucas established this connection with mitochondria, particularly the necessity of midi-chlorians for life, as a metaphor for society, stating that all parts of society must coexist harmoniously, much like the midi-chlorians and their hosts.

In 2006, a newly discovered species of bacteria residing within mitochondria was named Midichloria mitochondrii in honor of the midi-chlorians. Nate Lo, the discoverer, sought and received permission from George Lucas to use the name.

George Lucas' original plan for the sequel trilogy was that the midi-chlorians acted as a conduit between the living things (the vessels) and the Whills, who controlled the universe and were essentially the Force, directly feeding from it and serving as its Will. When Lucas sold Lucasfilm to The Walt Disney Company in 2012, these plans for the sequels were ultimately abandoned. However, Lucas believes that fans would have disliked his idea as much as they disliked the prequels, though the story would have been told from beginning to end.

During the development of the 2019 film Star Wars: Episode IX The Rise of Skywalker, the concluding chapter of the Star Wars saga, J.J. Abrams, the director, and his team consulted with George Lucas, who shared his ideas about the midi-chlorians.

Similar to other elements of The Phantom Menace, the midi-chlorians were met with some negative reactions from Star Wars fans. Some felt they introduced an element of hard science to the mystery and spirituality of the Force, disliking what they perceived as a new concept. Others, however, believed that giving the mystical Force a physical aspect echoed real-world religious traditions, strengthening the mythic qualities of the Force through the midi-chlorians.

Some felt that this undermined the democratic nature of the Force, despite the fact that the plot and dialogue of Return of the Jedi had indicated that the Force was, to some extent, hereditary, as exemplified by Luke's statement to Leia that "The Force is strong in my family."

Even individuals associated with the franchise, like author James Luceno, felt that the concept diminished the Force's mystique. Steve Perry, who incorporated midi-chlorians into his 2007 Star Wars Legends novel Death Star, described them as "less than inspired." George Lucas, conversely, viewed the two aspects of the Force separately, considering midi-chlorians as the practical, biological component, distinct from the Force's spiritual and metaphysical aspects.