Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens appears on TV on Channel 4 at 8:45 p.m. this evening, and was a landmark release for the Disney series. Not only did it introduce the next generation of heroes in a galaxy far, far away, it also introduced some of the most memorable villains in the franchise to date. Of course, Kylo Ren had become the scourge of the universe, but he wasn’t able to achieve this power without being tempted by the dark side of the force. And the creature who brought him into this world was Supreme Leader Snook, a mysterious villain whose background seems more intense than viewers might realize.
Snoke is first introduced in The Force Awakens in a similar way to how the Emperor is revealed in The Empire Strikes Back. His demonic face was shown exclusively through holograms, so viewers didn’t see his entire body until the next movie.
The strange figure had a distorted look. His head was badly bruised, covered in a deep wound, and he made a deep, booming sound (delivered by Andy Serkis, fan of The Lord of the Rings, Andy Serkis). Kylo Ren immediately showed fear and obedience to this giant, infuriating him that he was probably incredibly powerful.
After the release of The Force Awakens, fans speculated that Snoke might have been hiding his size using a hologram. They suspected that he was only two feet tall and reflected the strong Jedi Master Yoda character in both stature and strength.
However, in the sequel, The Last Jedi, Snoke is shown in person for the first time in the Star Destroyer’s throne room. His milky body contrasted with his bright yellow royal robe, and he was surrounded by a group of elite guards in red armor (again, just as the Emperor had done in Return of the Jedi).
The famous throne room battle showed Kylo Ren transforming his grandfather’s (Darth Vader) lightsaber into Snoke’s body, killing him for good, before teaming up with Rey Skywalker to defeat the Sith Lord’s elite guard.
Fans didn’t find out where Snoke really came from until The Rise of Skywalker.
The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi give some key details about Snoke. Background information on how he influenced Ben Solo to join the Dark Side while he was still young and vulnerable. Then he drenched him with a first class power to keep him trapped.
In The Rise of Skywalker, Emperor Palpatine (Darth Sidus) is back in action. It turns out that when Darth Vader killed his body in Return of the Jedi, his strength powers continued to thrive.
Palpatine’s body begins to rebuild itself in Exogol, a secret Sith planet hidden in the galaxy’s outer edges.
When Ray finally encounters Palpatine on this apocalyptic planet, Palpatine reveals a series of test tubes with half-disfigured Snokes floating inside of them.
Here Emperor Palpatine cloned himself to grow Snoke in giant tubes and spread his evil deed across the galaxy when he was physically unable to.
No further details are provided in the films, but a sequel book provides a first-hand account of what was going through Palpatine’s scarred head as he built his new empire between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens.
Star Wars: The Secrets of the Sith gave an insight into Palpatine’s layout. He wrote, “To continue my plans for complete domination of the galaxy, I will need a valuable form of my strength. Unable to leave Xigol, I will have to spread my influence across the galaxy through less direct means.”
He described the “genetic experiments” conducted by his loyal followers to revive Snoke. He continued, “Although his body proved unworthy of containing my dark core, Snoke’s nature’s sensitivity to strength would make him a powerful puppet nonetheless.”
Palpatine later described Snoke as “a temporary measure at best” while constantly trying to build a body “worthy of his infinite power.”
With his hand firmly in the Snoke doll, Palpatine began his new era of evil.
He continued, “Through my manipulation of Snoke, I began to gather forces, and to build up an army capable of opposing the new republic which had arisen in my absence. And through Snoke, I made sure that the first command would be mine to control.”
Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens airs on Channel 4 at 8:45 PM.
All Star Wars movies are available to watch on demand on Disney Plus now.
