Star Wars fans are convinced a beloved dead character will return as a villain, in a Winter Soldier-style twist

Star Wars fans are busy theorizing about The Bad Batch season 3 after the first trailer for the final season dropped – and they're convinced a beloved character could be returning from the dead with a huge twist. 

Cast your minds back to The Bad Batch season 2, and you'll remember Tech tragically, heroically sacrificed himself, plummeting to his death. But, according to this theory, he's actually still alive – and hunting his former friends, in a Winter Soldier-style scenario (H/T Screen Rant). 

"Y'all I’m convinced this is Tech," writes one concerned fan of a mysterious, masked trooper shown in the trailer. "Look at the helmet and chest armor. There looks to be a cerebral implant on the side of his head as well. Then, as @itsartcrawl said in his post... that looks like Pabu's Archium he's standing in front of. He's hunting them!"

"Calling it now, it's Tech and Crosshair is going to be the one who breaks his conditioning and save him," adds another person. 

"OMG, this is really bad. If they converted Tech to the Empire, the Pabu will surely be in trouble since he knows where it is," thinks this fan. 

If this really is Tech, he wouldn't be the only character back from the dead. In a big shock, the trailer also revealed that Asajj Ventress has returned – despite dying in the canon novel Dark Disciple. Just how she's back is a mystery for now. 

The Bad Batch season 3 begins with a triple season premiere this February 21, and remaining episodes will follow weekly on Disney Plus. 

While you wait, you can catch up on animated Star Wars with our guides on how to watch The Clone Wars in order and everything you need to know about Star Wars Rebels, or see everything the galaxy far, far away has in store with our guide to all the upcoming Star Wars movies and TV shows.