General Grievous has a noticeable cough in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, and, naturally, the Star Wars franchise’s non-movie materials explain the origin of this curious detail. General Grievous, originally known as Qymaen jai Sheelal, is a cybernetic Kaleesh, leader of the Separatist military, and Jedi-killer. Grievous’ backstory was explored extensively in his original appearances in the Star Wars Legends continuity, while his background in canon is somewhat murkier.

Just as the two continuities give Grievous two different origins, they also have different explanations for his signature cough, which itself has a humorous behind-the-scenes origin. In his original Legends-era incarnation, General Grievous was a veteran of the Huk War, and he grew to loathe the Jedi Order and Galactic Republic for taking the side of the invading Yam’rii species. Grievous’ body would be ravaged by a shuttle bombing, orchestrated by Dooku and framed as a Jedi plot, exacerbating his hate for the Jedi and necessitating his cybernetic reconstruction.

In canon, Grievous hated the Jedi out of jealousy, seeing them as near-invincible warriors and hating his lack of Force-sensitivity – leading him to voluntarily become a cyborg. When it comes to Grievous’ mysterious cough, the two timelines also offer different explanations.

General Grievous’ Cough Was Explained In The Original Clone Wars Show

The original Star Wars: Clone Wars micro series is among the essential Star Wars properties to understanding General Grievous, as the show’s 20th Chapter featured his onscreen debut and its 22nd Chapter thoroughly explores Grievous’ ability to defeat Jedi (and why he lost to them). In his introduction, General Grievous fights seven Jedi during the Battle of Hypori, engaging in combat with five at once and leaving all but three ᴅᴇᴀᴅ, despite lacking any Force powers.

Clone Wars would later show Grievous training in lightsaber combat with Count Dooku, who also taught Grievous to compensate for his lack of Force sensitivity. Grievous’ cybernetics gave him astounding strength and speed, and Count Dooku’s tutelage made him highly skilled in lightsaber combat, but Dooku also trained him to attack Jedi psychologically. The Sith Lord instructed Grievous to instill fear in the Jedi before fighting them and to retreat if his intimidation tactics failed.

On Hypori, Grievous flawlessly terrorized the Jedi before fighting them and fled as soon as their ARC trooper backup arrived. His methods worked again during the Battle of Coruscant, allowing him to brutally cut down clone troopers, a Senate guard, and two Jedi Masters before kidnapping Supreme Chancellor Palpatine.

Grievous likely became overconfident from these kills, however, as he did not retreat when suddenly confronted by Mace Windu. This mistake resulted in Windu using the Force to crush Grievous’ chest, damaging his internal organs and leaving him with a cough.

Grievous would never fully recover from Windu’s attack, explaining his persistent cough (and weakened physical abilities) in Revenge of the Sith. While Grievous was far more eager to retreat for much of the film, he repeated his mistake on Utapau when Obi-Wan Kenobi ambushed him, costing him two hands and, eventually, his life.

Clone Wars Season 7 Subtly Called Out This Scene

In Star Wars canon, General Grievous’ cough is simply a result of his voluntary cybernetic reconstruction. Despite this, canon implies that General Grievous’ kidnapping occurred similarly to its original Legends-era iteration.

The final four-part story arc of Star Wars: The Clone Wars references Jedi Master Shaak Ti as being tasked with guarding Supreme Chancellor Palpatine. Other modern canon materials reference Jedi Master Roron Corobb (one of the Jedi who died defending Palpatine in the Legends continuity) as another Jedi protector. Grievous, notably, had his cough long before the Battle of Coruscant.

Why George Lucas Wanted General Grievous To Have A Cough

According to the DVD commentary track for Revenge of the Sith, General Grievous’ cough has a rather humorous real-world explanation. Director George Lucas simply had a cough at one point during the film’s production and decided to have his coughs recorded and used for Grievous. Since Legends-era materials were officially canon at the time, this addition appeared in the Clone Wars micro-series before Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith and received a meaningful in-universe explanation that ties into Grievous’ training under Count Dooku and failure to heed his warning.