How old was Keira Knightley in Star Wars? Sabé storyline and character explained

Keira Knightley was cast during the August 1997 filming of Star Wars: Episode I, The Phantom Menace at Leavesden Film Studios in England, when she was 12 years old. Two years later, in the summer of 1999, when she was 14, the movie was released.

In Star Wars, Keira Knightly portrayed Sabé, the main dummy used by Padmé Amidala to serve and protect her queen. In The Phantom Menace, Sabé even assumed the role of Padmé during the blockade of Naboo.

However, Sabé, Padmé Amidala's handmaid, was much more than just the queen of Naboo's physical double. In light of this, her journey in the canon of Star Wars also spans across many more years and turns extremely gloomy.

Of all the handmaidens in Queen Amidala's royal retinue, Sabé was the most significant. In times of crisis, she took on different tasks from Amidala, who dressed down and assumed the role of a handmaiden, going by the less formal name Padmé Naberrie, while Sabé turned posed as the queen.

While playing these parts, Sabé and Padmé conversed covertly and subtly to avoid giving away who they were. On multiple instances during the Trade Federation's invasion of Naboo, Sabé assumed the role of queen.

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Everything to know about the Sabé storyline in Star Wars

In 46 BBY, a female human named Sabé was born on Naboo. Because of her striking likeness to Queen Padmé Amidala, Captain Panaka selected her to be the queen's handmaiden. She was trained to perform multiple roles, including that of an attendant, a bodyguard, and even a decoy.

The handmaidens regarded Sabe - whose name meant 'born on a sunny day' in the Naboo language - as the most important of them. In an emergency, she was the first in line to take the identity of the queen. She rose to prominence in Star Wars as one of the most important handmaidens in an exclusive group selected for their fidelity and commitment to Queen Padmé Amidala.

The decoy and the queen grew closer with time, to the point where Sabé was willing to sacrifice herself to ensure the safety of her queen. During the Trade Federation's siege, one of her responsibilities was to pretend to be Queen Amidala.

Her devotion to duty and her sense of dignity were unparalleled, as she dutifully carried out the queen's orders. Sabe was an expert in war, diplomacy, and espionage; she could impersonate the queen's speech pattern and demeanor with perfect accuracy. Her proficiency in several languages, including Basic, Huttese, and Gunganese, also made her a priceless asset.

She kept up this charade until Padmé's famous revelation at the Battle of Naboo. Even when Padme abdicated her reign, Sabé stayed devoted to her and kept working for her.

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How does Sabé's story end in the Star Wars comics?

Sabé became a superior Star Wars character in the comics, but her combat and investigation abilities made her appearance in The Phantom Menace seem like a whole new character. She gained the respect of Darth Vader very quickly, even if most of her problems highlighted her relationship with him. He even attempted to convert her to the Dark Side.

Following that, Sabé and Vader carried on collaborating, discovering a shared goal of destroying portions of the Crimson Dawn. Because she thought Anakin was still alive and she might be able to assist in bringing him back, Sabé even decided to side with Vader rather than her former handmaidens.

At some point, Vader forced Sabé to decide between power and pain, with the choice of power implying that she would submit to the Dark Side. Sabé refused to accept the hatred Vader wanted, even if she was striving to bring Anakin back. As a result, the Sith Lord cast Sabé into the ocean, bringing an end to her narrative.