Emperor Snoke
Emperor Snoke is undoubtedly the Big Bad of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and he is played by legendary motion-capture performer Andy Serkis. In the film, he appears only in holographic form – projected before Kylo Ren and General Hux (Domhnall Gleeson) as a giant and terrifying figure, instructing them in their evil activities. His actual location is not revealed, nor is his true identity.
In the original trilogy, the role of the Big Bad was filled by Emperor Palpatine, instructing Darth Vader, and in the prequels, we learned of his origin – that he began as a Sith Lord, operating undercover and manipulating those around him, until such time as he could seize control of the galaxy and declare it an Empire, with him as its Emperor.
He played a vital role in the cross-generational conflict – mentoring Anakin Skywalker in the ways of the Dark Side, and manipulating him into tempting his son, Luke, with a view to betraying Vader and having Luke replace him. Given that Episode VII revisits many of those themes, with Kylo Ren having clearly been tempted into abandoning his family in favour of Emperor Snoke, who mentors him in Dark Side powers, we can surely expect Snoke to play an important role in Episodes VIII and IX.
His location will undoubtedly be an important reveal because, unlike Palaptine, he did not appear to be on board the giant star-system-destroying weapon that presented the deadly threat in Episode VII. More important is his identity, however. He is clearly an ancient being, and there is currently a very specific fan theory forming that has Snoke linking the new trilogy of films to the prequels.
[zergpaid]The theory is that Emperor Snoke could be the mythical Darth Plagueis, whom Palpatine and Anakin Skywalker were heard discussing in Star Wars: Revenge Of The Sith. Plagueis trained Palpatine and was known as a particularly dangerous Sith Lord, who became enveloped by an obsession with immortality and, as a result, developed the ability to create life from nothing and save the living from death – possibly including resurrection.
If this were revealed to be the case, then the stage would be set for an eventual confrontation between Snoke and Rey – probably in Episode IX. If Rey is the daughter of Luke Skywalker, and her mother was killed by the First Order as part of their attack on the Jedi, then this is her personal motivation to destroy Snoke, accompanying the larger motivation of saving the galaxy (reflecting the micro and macro nature of the narrative of the franchise).
If Snoke is indeed Plagueis, and he has the power to create and resurrect life, then he has much to bargain with against the Skywalker family that has endured so much loss – a plot twist that will again deliver dramatic revelations that work on both the personal level, and the grand scale.
The question remains, who is the currently unnamed villainous character that will be played by Benicio Del Toro in Episode VIII, and how will he relate to Emperor Snoke and the First Order? That is speculation that will require patience and, of course, a few Episode VIII trailers.
Tell us, have you seen Star Wars: The Force Awakens yet? If so, how do you think the story will progress from here.