The term "Star Wars movies years earlier, had circumstances been different. Released in 1977, the original Star Wars movie introduces a relatively simple battle between good and evil. The noble Jedi are the good guys, championing the every-man, promoting peace and justice, etc. The Empire, meanwhile, are the bad guys, led by the duo of Darth Vader and Palpatine who both practice the dark side of the Force. In the original trilogy era, these villainous Force s were simply referred to as "the dark side" - a cautionary tale for those who strayed from the path of the Jedi.
From podracing to Midi-chlorians, 1999's The Phantom Menace brought a wealth of fresh concepts to Star Wars mythology, but arguably the most important was the word "Sith." The name is dropped by Palpatine in reference to his apprentice, Darth Maul, and Qui-Gon Jinn later warns the Jedi council of the Sith's return. Although this was the first instance of the Sith being explicitly named in a Star Wars movie, the term's history stretches back far earlier. The first publicly released Sith mention can be found in the 1976 Star Wars novelization. Adapted by Alan Dean Foster from George Lucas' early scripts, Star Wars: From The Adventures of Luke Skywalker includes several details that wouldn't be revealed until later movies, such as Palpatine's name and the "Sith Lord" title.
While the novelization gave Star Wars fans an early nod to the Sith, Foster didn't invent the term himself - he drew influence from one of Lucas' early scripts, which described Darth Vader as a "Dark Lord of the Sith," and George Lucas came particularly close to using the word in A New Hope. A scene was filmed where General Tagge refers to Vader as a "Sith Lord" on the Death Star, but this moment was ultimately cut from the finished movie. Although it would take a few decades for the Sith to reveal themselves in the flesh, their presence was evidently molded into the mythology of Star Wars from the very beginning.
The Death Star meeting scene plays out more briskly in the truncated theatrical version, but had George Lucas known how influential the word "Sith" would become in later years, he probably wouldn't have left this vital line on the cutting room floor. With that said, Star Wars arguably benefited from simplifying its mythology in the early years. The original trilogy era was a comparatively straight-forward time to be a Star Wars fan, and that initial burst of mainstream popularity might've been aided by the more accessible light side vs. dark side narrative. Introducing the notion of the Sith (and all the baggage that comes with them) so early in the movie series might've distracted from the central struggle against the Empire. In later trilogies, however, Lucas had the freedom to expand on his world.
If A New Hope's Sith reference hadn't been cut, The Phantom Menace might've avoided some of the backlash it received upon release. Although opinion of the Star Wars prequels has since become kinder, fans initially revolted against the second trilogy, with one common criticism being perceived changes to established lore, such as the Midi-chlorians. If the Sith had been established since the 1970s, The Phantom Menace might've felt like less of a departure. And there was precedent, given that the 1977 Topps Star Wars Series 1 trading cards had referred to Vader as a Sith Lord. Unfortunately, it still couldn't have prevented Jar-Jar Binks from becoming a global pariah over the next decade.
The recycling of the word "Sith" in The Phantom Menace is another example of Star Wars revisiting George Lucas' playbook in later installments. Additions to Star Wars movies or TV shows can often be mistaken for completely new elements, when in fact most of the ideas trace back to Lucas' original drafts, or the concept artwork of Ralph McQuarrie. In any long-running franchise, fans generally like to feel that there's a "plan" in place, and important developments aren't being made up on the fly. The Sith might've been a late addition to the Star Wars party but, appropriately enough, they were there all along, lingering in the shadows.
