STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI's Andy Serkis Details Snoke's Motion Capture Performance In Recent Interview

STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI's Andy Serkis Details Snoke's Motion Capture Performance In Recent Interview

In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly; well-known motion-capture performer Andy Serkis details work on his Star Wars: The Last Jedi character Snoke, as well as insight into mo-cap in general.

By Nebula - Mar 08, 2018 10:03 AM EST
Filed Under: Star Wars
Source: Entertainment Weekly
Despite almost never appearing as himself on screen; Andy Serkis has grown to be quite the prolific actor in the industry, having appeared in many popular franchises. One of his recent performances was that of Supreme Leader Snoke in Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Serkis detailed his approach to playing the character, through motion capture, in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly.

I’ve always approached him as someone who is obviously in a position of supreme power, but actually, there is a level of vulnerability about the character. The way that his face is caved in, he has those deep scarifications. His skull’s almost been crushed.

That in reference to the physical and emotional aspect of the role.

He knows that as a leader you run the risk of people rebelling, you run the risk of people turning against you, the people that are closest to you. Even in that position of power, there is a level of fear. When you’re operating from a level of fear, you operate dangerously as a leader.

As we know across the world, there are leaders who have famously done that — and do. That’s what I really wanted to bring to the character. There’s this incredible danger and volatility.

He also went into misconceptions many people have about a motion-capture performance:

I think a lot of people think that you have to almost pantomime the performance or heighten it in some way. What’s illustrated is, in fact, the opposite. And it would be the same if you were playing Caesar or Gollum for that matter, or any character. You don’t exaggerate facial expressions. You’re not pushing through any false artifact.

What do you think about Andy Serkis' performance as Snoke in the Star Wars sequel trilogy? If you're interested in what Serkis' actual performance looks like without CG adjustments, thanks to a recently released video of a scene from Star Wars: The Last Jedi, you can! Here it is:

STAR WARS: Simon Kinberg Reportedly Seen As Safe Choice To Develop New Trilogy Despite Past Flops
Related:

STAR WARS: Simon Kinberg Reportedly Seen As "Safe Choice" To Develop New Trilogy Despite Past Flops

New STAR WARS Films May NOT Continue The Skywalker Saga; Rey Positioned As The Obi-Wan Of The Trilogy
Recommended For You:

New STAR WARS Films May NOT Continue The Skywalker Saga; Rey "Positioned As The Obi-Wan" Of The Trilogy

DISCLAIMER: As a user generated site and platform, ComicBookMovie.com is protected under the DMCA (Digital Millenium Copyright Act) and "Safe Harbor" provisions.

This post was submitted by a user who has agreed to our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines. ComicBookMovie.com will disable users who knowingly commit plagiarism, piracy, trademark or copyright infringement. Please CONTACT US for expeditious removal of copyrighted/trademarked content. CLICK HERE to learn more about our copyright and trademark policies.

Note that ComicBookMovie.com, and/or the user who contributed this post, may earn commissions or revenue through clicks or purchases made through any third-party links contained within the content above.

Nebula
Nebula - 3/8/2018, 10:31 AM
Anyone else just have trouble getting onto the site? 😶
TheLight
TheLight - 3/8/2018, 10:34 AM
@Nebula - Yeah. A few seconds ago, it crashed when I was trying to reload the page. I tried again and it came back on. Issues with the cache?
TheLight
TheLight - 3/8/2018, 10:32 AM
Andy Serkis, a legend of our time. He needs a real chance to shine. I enjoy all of his motion capture work, but I want to see more live action too.

Nebula
Nebula - 3/8/2018, 10:40 AM
@L0RDbuckethead - Someone else posted it in another thread and Ror's got a post going up about it in a minute.
fundamentallyOT
fundamentallyOT - 3/8/2018, 11:27 AM
One of the reasons many people have stopped watching the Oscars is that there is no category for this type of work.

Aside to that, the film industry should recognise the talent of these actors whether they do motion capture or not.

Anyway, good performance in The Prestige, also as the cook whose name escapes me but the characters for I will always remember him are Gollum/Smeágol.
Nebula
Nebula - 3/8/2018, 11:29 AM
@fundamentallyOT - They should also do stunt performer and voice actor categories.
fundamentallyOT
fundamentallyOT - 3/8/2018, 12:06 PM
@Nebula - Or it might be time for another type of festival to promote awards to this categories. Maybe Awards given at Comic Con. If there's enough interest or appetite, I'm sure other festivals will follow suit.

Actors who have worked on motion capture:

Alan Tudyk = Sonny (I Robot)
Zoe Saldana = Neytiri (Avatar)
Mark Ruffalo = the Hulk (Avengers)
Tom Hanks = almost all characters (The Polar Express)
Bill Nighy = Davy Jones (Pirates of the Caribbean)
Benedict Cumberbatch = Smaug (The Hobbit)
Ray Winstone = Beowulf (Beowulf)
Willem Dafoe = Tars Tarkas (John Carter) ETC.
fundamentallyOT
fundamentallyOT - 3/8/2018, 12:32 PM
And sometimes actors also behave like Prima Donnas taking advantage of other people, using them as toilet paper. That behaviour infuriates me particularly.

Inktown03
Inktown03 - 3/8/2018, 12:36 PM
What is love?!?! Baby don't hurt me don't hurt me no more!!
Nebula
Nebula - 3/8/2018, 2:50 PM
@Inktown03 -
ImmovableForce
ImmovableForce - 3/8/2018, 3:46 PM
Ah, Snoke. We barely knew him.
Wait..
We..
didn't..
know him.
View Recorder