 At the time of the films release, the producers ran a  disinformation campaign to suggest that Natalie Portman (qv)  played both Padme and The Queen at all times. In fact, they are not  always the same person. For many sections of the film, notably those  where The Queen is wearing the black outfit with the huge feather  headdress, she is actually a decoy, played by  Keira Knightley (qv). The real queen, Portman, is actually  disguised as a handmaiden. Various conflicting public statements  make it extremely difficult to figure out who is who. Whole websites  are devoted to figuring out which actress is playing which  handmaiden or The Queen at any given point.