For years now, Andy Serkis has been the go-to actor when it comes to motion-capture performances. So, when Lucasfilm needed someone to mo-cap the performance for its new big “Star Wars” baddie, Snoke, Serkis got the call. After a big debut in ‘The Force Awakens,’ Serkis thought he was in for a long run as the villain. Well, then ‘The Last Jedi’ script came in and the actor was shocked to see what happens to Snoke.
Speaking to io9, Andy Serkis talked about how surprised he was to learn the fate of Snoke when he read the script for “Star Wars: The Last Jedi.” And in no uncertain terms, the actor explained how the death of Snoke came as an absolute surprise.
READ MORE: ‘Andor’: Diego Luna Teases “Familiar Faces” Showing Up In His ‘Star Wars’ Series
“I was devastated when I read that script because it was all going so well,” Serkis said. “I was like, ‘Man, this is a boss character. I’m going to love playing… what!? You’re kidding me, what?’ I was like ‘Okay, is a good idea? I supposed it is. I was slightly mortified, pardon the pun. It was all in the right, I think. I loved playing that character and I love the face-off scene between Kylo Ren and Rey, and so it was great.”
Of course, Serkis is a smart guy and knows it’s probably best not to say anything to disparage the “Star Wars” franchise. Who knows, they could also ask him to reprise the role for some other project or maybe voice a new character? But it’s clear the actor had hopes and dreams for Snoke that far exceeded what happened in ‘The Last Jedi,’ where Snoke was chopped in half by a lightsaber.
Many years from now, when the “Star Wars” franchise has moved on from this most recent era of storytelling, it’ll be interesting to revisit ‘The Last Jedi’ and the Sequel Trilogy, in general. It seems as more time passes, we get even more reactions from those involved, and it continues to paint the picture that Lucasfilm really was flying by the seat of its pants through the creation of those films.