Andy Serkis Hints That We Could Still See Snoke’s Backstory in Future ‘Star Wars’ Movies
The following post contains SPOILERS for Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
Is Snoke Darth Plagueis? Is he actually Mace Windu? What about Palpatine? Jar Jar Binks?? Homer Simpson?!? Star Wars fans came up with any and every fan theory they could fathom to guess the identity of the mysterious Supreme Leader, first introduced in The Force Awakens. Then Rian Jonhson’s The Last Jedi arrived and revealed ... nothing.
The latest Star Wars film didn’t give us a Snoke origin story, a shocking revelation, or tell us anything about the villain’s motivations; it just left him cut in half on the floor of his throne room. But that doesn’t mean the Supreme Leader’s story is done for good, at least according to Snoke actor Andy Serkis.
I caught up with the motion-capture master over the phone this week to talk about reprising another of his memorable villains, Ulysses Klaue in Black Panther. When I brought up The Last Jedi, I asked Serkis if he’d had conversations with J.J. Abrams or Johnson about Snoke’s past. Then Serkis suggested – totally unprompted, by the way – that Snoke’s backstory may not remain a mystery for long.
We did, yeah. We’ve talked about it. We wanted to keep it a mystery and, you know by the way, it is Star Wars so who knows what might happen. Without giving anything away.
Wait, really? Who says “without giving anything away” if there’s nothing to give away? Just to be super sure, I asked if there was a chance of revisiting Snoke’s past in the future. His response:
Well, it’s Star Wars. What can I say? [Laughs]
There’s plenty Abrams could explore in Episode IX. We still don’t know how Snoke rose to power, the explanations behind his deformities, or why, exactly, he hates the Resistance. Serkis has vaguely described the Supreme Leader‘s past before, saying that “his hatred of the Resistance is fueled by what’s happened to him personally,” and referred to him as a “vulnerable and wounded character” who’s suffered. It sure sounds like the Lucasfilm Story Group has a meaty origin story for Snoke in mind.
Johnson previously explained why he omitted further details about Snoke, saying that it “wasn’t something that dramatically had a place” in The Last Jedi, and a major surprise in the throne room wouldn’t have made much sense for Rey’s character. Johnson did tease that it could be addressed in Episode IX or other Star Wars films, and with Serkis’ comments, that seems more than likely now. Snoke fans, put those tin foil hats back on!
You can see Serkis as Klaue in Black Panther, which hits theaters February 16.
Gallery – A Visual History of Star Wars Movie Posters: