You’ve said: “Part of my job is to be anonymous and I think to be able to live, to observe more than be observed is more important” How difficult has that become now that you’re involved in this Star Wars juggernaut?
Finally, on the 15th of December, the latest episode of the series ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ will premiere worldwide. Although the plot remains top secret, Daisy Ridley (who plays Rey) says, “The director has aimed for a story that no one could have predicted. Most people should be surprised by the development of the story.” John Boyega (who plays Finn) says, putting weight into his words, that, “Everything starts moving backwards. It starts going opposite to what everyone thought after seeing ‘The Force Awakens’.”
Looking back on the release of the previous instalment, it is the responsibility of all human beings to go to the theatre on the first day to avoid any spoilers but still…. is there something…. even a little…. hint…. For that reason, we hit up Adam Driver (who plays Kylo Ren) with some questions while he was here promoting the film!
Kylo Ren, who, together with Rey, seems to hold the key to this story quite tightly. What development awaits him in this instalment?
Driver: “This instalment starts developing right after ‘The Force Awakens’ so he has very little time to come to terms with everything that has just happened and he has to keep moving forward. The beliefs that he holds are going to be challenged. Whether it’s the dark side or the light side, it is impossible to lead a life and also to make choices that are completely without fault. That scene with Han Solo was a huge incident for him. Will his uncertainty and ambiguity cause him to fall further into the dark side or… Within this world in particular, there are many people who hold grey parts within themselves.”
Rian Johnson, both the writer and director of ‘The Last Jedi’, a story which has often been described as “shocking” throughout promotion. Driver himself said that he found Kylo Ren’s fate “to be truly unexpected”.
Driver: “Rian couldn’t overlook the psychological side of Kylo Ren’s reality, the fact that he killed his real father. I mean in terms of how is that going to effect him. Also, in a way, that truth makes the reality of the situation even more deep-rooted. Because it cannot be denied that that incident happened, he himself cannot ignore it, and actually, the truth makes his situation even more real. For me, that was really useful.’
Surprisingly this is the first time Driver is playing someone younger than himself. In terms of the development of the story, Kylo’s “youth” is very important. “It is an underlying element of the script.”
Driver: “His youthfulness is not lost in Rian’s script. Kylo Ren’s ideas further take shape. Almost like a religious fever. And he wants to believe that he is doing the right thing. I think Darth Vader was a villain who was completely certain on which path he ought to take. Kylo Ren is a character who we get a glimpse at having both determination, uncertainty, and fragility, so yes, perhaps you could say he is a new type of ‘villain’ within the world of [Star Wars]. Even now he is going through an inner battle within himself which continues to unfold. Above just playing the character, that part is very interesting to me, and I enjoy that.”
We are intrigued by Kylo’s connection to Rey, who seemed to be visually paralleled to him in all the trailers and posters….
Driver: “This time Rey and Kylo Ren are the center of this huge developing drama. They stand on opposite sides, but the dividing line is very narrow, and within both of them they hold both light and darkness. They aren’t actually that separate from one another, and in some ways they may feel lonely, but they are going through this journey together. For both of them, the other is pretty much the reverse of themselves.”
Again, more meaningful comments emerge and our imaginations run wild. However, we won’t have to wait long for those answers. We wait in anticipation…
TOKYO — For two Halloweens now, the black mask and cape combo of dark side wielder Kylo Ren has been among the most popular costumes among children, just like how that character’s grandfather Darth has been for four decades now. This development is something that the actor behind Kylo Ren, Adam Driver, enjoyed immensely. “It’s good, it’s especially fun for me,” he told Super. “I live in New York, in a building with a lot of apartments with a lot of kids and I supply them with lightsabers and masks and motivation to be evil to their parents.”
It may come as a surprise then that the development of Kylo Ren going without his distinctive mask for “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” was something that Driver welcomed. Apparently the mask literally got in the way of things. “I could see where I was going, so that’s a plus,” he admitted. “It’s a beautiful mask. I have a love-hate relationship with the costume.” There was a meaning behind it all. “The idea is what is he hiding, and what is he hiding from.”
The 34-year-old Driver first came to public recognition as a character also named Adam on the HBO series “Girls.” But it was his turn as General Leia Organa and the late Han Solo’s treacherous son in “Star Wars: Episode VII—The Force Awakens” that turned Driver into a worldwide star.
Through it all, Driver has concentrated on his career with a singular focus, but he did deny staying in character as Kylo Ren even when the camera wasn’t rolling—mostly.
“That’s not completely true. Sometimes I am, sometimes I’m not, depending on the situation, on what he day is and who the scene is with. Star Wars that you see is an action-adventure family drama but in between takes on set, it’s pure comedy. You have Stormtroopers trying to figure out how to go to the bathroom to puppets not working and giving everyone the finger. It’s hilarious so sometimes it’s hard to stay focus so it requires quite a bit of focus.”
He doesn’t usually watch his own movies, but he did make an exception for “The Force Awakens” (there were so many visual effects that he needed to be sure his lightsaber was working and that there was indeed outer space behind him) and he made the same exception for “The Last Jedi.”
“I don’t really find it helpful, if anything it just makes you more self-conscious that someone is watching. It’s interesting watching yourself. The movies are great and what Rian (Johnson) has done with this one is something that’s never been seen before in a Star Wars movie and that’s interesting.”
Reylo Source 