Torture

During the High Republic Era, the Nihil marauders engaged in acts of torture.

The Tusken Raider tribes inhabiting Tatooine practiced ritualistic torture upon their captives. Shmi Skywalker Lars suffered capture and torture that ultimately led to her demise.

Although the Confederacy of Independent Systems engaged in the torture of prisoners, their Head of State, Count Dooku, denied such activities.

Following a failed escape attempt and subsequent insults, Hondo Ohnaka subjected Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker to electrical torture within a Containment field, deriving enjoyment from their suffering.

In an effort to compel Anakin and his clone troopers to surrender, Doctor Nuvo Vindi employed electricity to torture Padmé Amidala and Jar Jar Binks as part of his escape plan.

Cad Bane utilized electricity within a Containment field to torture Bolla Ropal, attempting to force him to unlock a holocron, which resulted in Ropal's death. After capturing Ahsoka Tano, Bane employed his wrist-comm and stuncuffs to electrocute her in order to lure Anakin. Upon his own capture, Cad Bane challenged the Jedi, questioning whether they would resort to torturing him.

Anakin (prior to his transformation into Darth Vader) demonstrated a proclivity for torture; even as a Jedi, he employed the Force choke on Poggle the Lesser to extract information regarding the elimination of the brain worms.

Following the capture of Eeth Koth, General Grievous ordered his torture using an electrostaff wielded by an IG-100 MagnaGuard during a transmission to the Jedi. Subsequently, TV-94 tortured Koth with electricity within a Containment field to impede Anakin and Adi Gallia from rescuing him.

Prime Minister Almec employed a Shock collar to torture Duchess Satine Kryze in an unsuccessful attempt to coerce her into signing a false confession. He then attempted to use a shock collar on her nephew Korkie Kryze and his friends. However, Ahsoka placed the collar on Almec, forcing his surrender.

Cad Bane subjected C-3PO to a torturous ordeal to obtain information about the Senate Office Building. During the Showdown on Teth, Cad Bane tortured Obi-Wan with electricity from his wrist-comm.

Savage Opress endured torture via Force lightning at the hands of Count Dooku during his training and later for killing King Katuunko, despite being instructed to capture him alive.

Even Piell was subjected to electrical torture by a medical droid within a Containment field to reveal the coordinates of the Nexus Route.

Riff Tamson tortured Anakin and Kit Fisto using Mon Calamari eels in an attempt to locate Prince Lee-Char.

After being lured into a trap, Count Dooku used Force lightning to subdue Anakin. Subsequently, he was tortured with electrostaffs by MagnaGuards, with Dooku negotiating a prisoner exchange for General Grievous.

Obi-Wan was subjected to lashes from an Electro-whip after his failed attempt to rescue Gupat Roshti. Anakin used the Force choke on Queen Miraj Scintel, demanding the return of his friends. Atai Molec tortured Ahsoka with a shock collar after she used the Force to make him fall off a balcony.

While enslaved at the Kadavo slave processing facility, Obi-Wan was tortured with an electrostaff to his Shock collar and Tuktee with an Electro-whip.

Count Dooku tortured Anakin with Force lightning after defeating him, who was defending Queen Miraj Scintel.

Anakin tortured an ithorian bartender with a Force choke to obtain information on Cade Bane, Moralo Eval, and Rako Hardeen.

During the Battle of Dathomir, Mother Talzin employed a Voodoo doll and Voodoo pins to torture Count Dooku.

Maul tortured Obi-Wan through physical beatings as revenge for his defeat.

Saw Gerrera was subjected to electrical torture by Kalani within a Containment field to reveal the location of the Onderon rebels.

After killing Savage Opress and defeating Maul, Darth Sidious tortured Maul with Force lightning while laughing.

In a Dark illusion, Darth Sidious tortured Grand Master Yoda with Force lightning.

Rafa Martez was tortured with electricity by an 8D-series smelter droid belonging to the Pyke Syndicate as punishment for losing their spice.

Maul tortured Clone trooper Jesse with a Mind probe to extract information about Ahsoka during the Siege of Mandalore.

Darth Sidious tortured Mace Windu with Force lightning and then ejected him from the window of his office following their duel.

Wrecker and Echo were tortured with Shock collars by a zygerrian after being captured.

Royce Hemlock tortured Crosshair with an Interrogation droid to ascertain the whereabouts of Omega.

Royce Hemlock inflicted torturous electrical experiences upon clone troopers, including Hunter and Wrecker, within the Tantiss Base training room in an attempt to transform them into Clone X troopers.

Trilla, Masana Tide, and other Jedi were subjected to electrical torture in an Interrogation chair within Fortress Inquisitorius with the goal of converting them into Inquisitors. Cere Junda was tortured but managed to escape.

Han Solo, Chewbacca, and Sagwa were tortured by Pyke sentinels using electrostaffs during the Raid on Kessel.

Reuniting with Obi-Wan on Mapuzo, Darth Vader employed the Force to force Obi-Wan into flammable rocks as retribution for his injuries.

The Third Sister threatened to torture Leia Organa to extract information regarding the Hidden Path.

Cassian Jeron Andor and a group of prisoners arriving at the Narkina 5 Imperial Prison Complex were tortured by the warden utilizing the Tunqstoid steel floor to enforce obedience.

To compel Bix Caleen to reveal information, the Imperial Security Bureau employed a sonic torture device that forced her to listen to recordings of the dying screams of massacred Dizonite children.

The Grand Inquisitor attempted to torture Kanan Jarrus with a Mind probe for information on other rebels; when it failed, he was then tortured with electricity in an Interrogation chair for information on Fulcrum and the Rebel network.

The Seventh Sister used a Mind probe to torture Ezra Bridger in order to find Ahsoka.

Admiral Brom Titus tortured Rex with an Interrogation droid to induce him to surrender his rebel allies.

Saw Gerrera tortured Klik-Klak with electricity from stuncuffs to gain information on the Empire's construction activities on Geonosis.

Hera Syndulla was tortured with electricity in an Interrogation chair by Governor Arihnda Pryce for both pleasure and to extract information about the Rebel fleet following the failed Attack on Lothal.

Saw Gerrera had Bodhi Rook tortured by a Mairan to verify the truthfulness of his claims regarding the Death Star.

The Galactic Empire utilized interrogator droids equipped with mind probes to torture subjects, although these proved ineffective against resilient individuals like Leia Organa.

Darth Vader tortured Han with a Scan Grid, Chewbacca with sonic sounds, and Leia through unspecified means, intending for their pain to resonate through the Force and draw out Luke Skywalker.

EV-9D9 and 8D8 found enjoyment in torturing droids within Jabba's Palace. A GNK-series power droid was tortured by applying a hot iron to its feet, and Eightyem was placed on a vertical torture rack.

The Emperor attempted to torture Luke Skywalker to death using Force lightning after failing to convert him to the Dark side.

Following the replacement of the Empire by the New Republic, the new government enacted anti-torture laws; however, this did not prevent the First Order from secretly developing a new model of interrogator droid.

Morgan Elsbeth tortured civilians of Calodan in electrocution cages.

Kylo Ren tortured Del Meeko with a Mind probe and discovered that Lor San Tekka possessed the fragment of the Map to Skywalker.

Kylo Ren used a Mind probe to torture Poe Dameron in an Interrogation chair, seeking the piece of the map leading to Luke Skywalker. He later attempted the same on Rey Skywalker but was unsuccessful.

Jockeys and Bargwill Tomder would torture Fathiers using Electrocrops and Whips.

Supreme Leader Snoke tortured Rey with a Mind probe to find Luke Skywalker's location, then forced her to witness the destruction of the Resistance navy through an Oculus.

CB-23 feigned the torture of Lechee to obtain information on the whereabouts of Agent Norath Kev, who had been taken by Bounty hunter Ax Tagrin, by flashing one of her grappling arms and scratching the side of a stone table twice.

Commander Pyre and Agent Tierny tortured CB-23, Synara San, and Jarek Yeager with electricity in Interrogation chairs to extract information about the Resistance.

• Assault [27]
• Dismemberment [49]
• Electric shock [11]
• Fire [1]
• Hot metal [49]
• Sonic sounds [41]
• Voodoo [26]
• Watching [53]
• Whipping [23]

• Force lightning [20]
• Force choke [15]
• Mind probe [32]
• Dark illusion [30]

• Mairan [7]
• Mon Calamari eel [22]

• Interrogation chair [37]
• Interrogator droid [35]
• Scan Grid [5]
• Shock collar [17]
• Tunqstoid steel [40]
• Mind Flayer [56]

• Strength of will [48]
• Force resistance [42] [8]

• C-3PO [18]
• GNK-series power droid [49]
• Eightyem [49]

In the rough draft of Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, Darth Vader subjects Princess Leia to intense electroshocks. In the second draft of A New Hope, Leia is replaced by Deak Starkiller, the brother of Luke Starkiller (who would later become Luke Skywalker). Upon discovering Deak in his cell, the heroes notice an eerie yellow glow in his eyes. In the third draft, Vader enters Leia's cell, the door slams shut, and "her screams can barely be heard." The IT-O torture droid didn't appear until the fourth draft. According to actress Carrie Fisher, one rejected draft depicted Han and Luke finding Leia unconscious, hanging upside down in mid-air, bruised and beaten, with yellow eyes, having been exposed to "some form of radar torture". However, this idea was abandoned because Chewbacca would have to carry her around "for, like, the next fifteen minutes."

In the final film, the door to Leia's cell closes before the audience witnesses the actual torture. In the Star Wars Legends Star Wars radio drama from 1981, the interrogation scene is vividly portrayed as a psychologically intense encounter, so chilling that it elicited complaints from a concerned listener. In this version, Vader employs mind-altering drugs and subliminal suggestion, making Leia believe her skin is burning and her flesh is being torn apart, eliciting the same reaction as the real thing.

A modified version appears in current Star Wars canon. In the 2015 junior novel A New Hope: The Princess, the Scoundrel, and the Farm Boy, the interrogation droid injects Leia with a truth serum, inducing her to speak uninhibitedly, reveal withheld information, and lose her grip on reality, making her believe her interrogator is a member of the Rebel Alliance who needs the information. The story briefly mentions physical torture as well, noting that "the pain that lanced through her arm as the needle punctured her skin and the serum seeped into her system was unbearable", and that "she hadn't broken under any amount of agony".

A darker version is presented in the 2016 novel Bloodline, where Leia tells Ransolm Casterfo that Vader tortured her for hours, while a couple of his Imperial stormtroopers watched (in the film, it's a couple of regular troopers) and thinks about how she was "writhing on the floor and screaming for mercy that never came." Later, she states to Casterfo that Vader tortured her until she screamed and shook and thought she would die just from the pain alone.

In the short story "Change of Heart," published in the 2017 anthology From a Certain Point of View, an Imperial Navy Trooper observes Vader and the droid interrogating Leia about the location of the rebel base. The story describes how the trooper finds the interrogation painful to watch and how he struggles to control his emotions during the "exhausting" session, and how Leia is "wrung out in a quivering heap of emotional and physical collapse" afterward. The story also makes a reference to "the physical torment the young princess had borne with such fierce determination, as Vader had probed her mind beneath the hungry needles of the interrogator droid."

The 2022 novel The Princess and the Scoundrel describes the truth serum as "worse than any physical torture", and states that it induced powerful hallucinations of the people Leia loved dying in front of her when she refused to talk. At the end of the session, Leia's heart heart was "exhausted from racing, her eyes red and dry, her lungs ravaged from screaming—both her mind and her body were broken, but her secrets were still kept." The book also briefly mentions physical torture, but does not elaborate any further; saying Vader had tortured Leia "mentally and physically, leaving her with scars that no one could see but that she still felt."

According to producer Gary Kurtz, Luke and Leia were not originally intended to be siblings; Luke's sister was initially conceived as a separate character who would appear in a later episode that was never realized. The decision to make Leia Luke's sister was incorporated into Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi "to wrap up everything neatly". The revelation that Leia was Luke's twin sister, and Darth Vader's daughter, added a new layer of eeriness to the scene from A New Hope: J.J. Abrams, the director of Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens and Star Wars: Episode IX The Rise of Skywalker, described the scene as "the most jaw-dropping-est" Star Wars moment for him: "When you think of it later, it's like, 'Oh my God, that's his daughter.' He's going to torture his own daughter. At the time, it's just scary. Then it gets just really creepy when you think about it. It's the worst. It's horrible."

For Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back, Irvin Kershner, the director, initially captured more footage depicting the torture of Han Solo. This footage displayed the torture device in operation, complete with spikes, needles, electronic components, and frequent flashes of electricity. These scenes were ultimately removed from the final cut due to concerns from the filmmakers that they would be excessively disturbing for younger viewers. Some of Han's screams that occurred off-screen were also removed for the same reason. The director stated that the consensus was that the excluded material was too intense for a film of this nature. However, a quick flashback in the Darth Vader (2020) 12 comic book shows the scan grid utilizing several long, sharp needles.

Luke Skywalker experiences a vision of Han and Leia "in pain" within the film. It is later revealed that Darth Vader subjected Luke's friends to torture, knowing that their suffering would reach Luke through the Force, luring him to Bespin where he could be captured. The film depicts Chewbacca being held in a cell and exposed to extremely loud noises. In the Legends novelization, it is stated that the Wookiee endured sonic torture and searing lights. The movie also shows Han Solo being tortured with electricity on the scan grid, but the fate of Leia remains unrevealed. The princess is only shown being pushed into the cell later, asking Han, "Why are they doing this?". The Legends novel Heir to the Empire mentions that both Han and Leia were subjected to torture, and the Legends novel Dark Tide I: Onslaught briefly refers to Han and Leia both experiencing an ordeal with a torture machine on Bespin, without providing further details.

The canon junior novel The Empire Strikes Back: So You Want to Be a Jedi? provides additional insight, describing Luke's vision as follows: "They are being tortured. Leia is screaming, her eyes bulging from her head. Han is straining, his back arched, his neck on the verge of snapping." Later, Luke reflects on what he witnessed, saying, "Before your eyes are your best friends. Screaming in pain. Writhing under needles and blades, barking with fear and whimpering in horror."