Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - Adam Driver Interview
Adam Driver discusses Kylo Ren, how his relationship working with J.J. Abrams changed from ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ to now, and more in this interview for ‘Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’ with CinemaBlend Events Editor Eric Eisenberg.
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00:00 "People keep telling me they know me.
00:04 No one does."
00:06 "But I do."
00:10 So this being your third time playing Kylo Ren, and also just having the opportunity
00:17 to work with a different director in Rian Johnson in the making of The Last Jedi, I'm
00:21 curious to what extent you felt that you had kind of a certain authority over who Kylo
00:26 Ren is in the making of this one.
00:28 Oh, that's a good question.
00:31 There is definitely a point that with everything that you have to take ownership over what
00:34 it is you're doing, but then not too much to the point that you feel like you have a
00:38 sense of you know what you're doing and you're closing yourself off to a better idea.
00:43 So, in that sense, I never felt like you have control, which helps because it's very much
00:51 a character who is out of control.
00:54 Sure, yeah.
00:55 I'm kind of controlled by his emotions a little bit, yeah.
00:58 Yeah, and also I'm surrounded by people who are good and give you ideas in the moment.
01:04 The set is so clear and beautiful and it's so much information.
01:08 The costume is so helpful.
01:11 So I got a lot of answers from the things around me.
01:13 Sure.
01:14 And when you were talking with J.J.
01:15 Irams, how did the conversations compare and contrast with what you were talking about
01:18 on Force Awakens?
01:19 Well, there was just a shorthand right away that we didn't have on Force Awakens.
01:24 It was no time wasted of does he like me?
01:27 Am I giving him the right thing?
01:29 Is this the right, you know?
01:31 Right away we started this one with be like, "Okay, there's no idea that we can leave off
01:37 the table.
01:38 Everything that you're thinking and that I'm thinking we have to say and try it because
01:43 we only have this opportunity to do it."
01:45 So there was, regardless of what it was, so there was already an immediacy and familiar
01:53 with each other that there was no time wasted.
01:56 Sure.
01:57 And is there kind of stuff that you personally know about Kylo Ren that maybe isn't seen
02:01 on the big screen?
02:02 Just like that you know for a fact about him?
02:04 Yes.
02:05 Yeah?
02:06 Can you tell me anything?
02:07 No.
02:08 No?
02:09 How does that kind of work into your process?
02:10 Like how much are you thinking about like, I mean, there is a kind of blank spot period
02:12 in between when in the last movie when we saw him have Luke's betrayal and kind of his
02:18 journey with Snoke.
02:19 So how much did you kind of fill in those gaps for yourself?
02:21 You know, we do.
02:22 I don't want to shortchange it by saying what they are because I always feel that that's
02:26 more exciting for an audience to attach meaning.
02:30 And in a sense it doesn't really matter what my opinion is.
02:33 It's for an audience to project their own meaning towards.
02:37 And luckily we had a script that honors ambiguity.
02:41 That he, they I should say, Chris and JJ wrote something that is not always spelled out in
02:48 the dialogue which I love.
02:49 You know, it's not characters saying exactly what they're feeling.
02:54 And again it's a testament to the or keeps in the tradition of the original movies.
02:58 They're filled with so much ambiguity and moments that I guess literally don't make
03:03 sense but there's an emotional truth about them that makes them, makes an audience, you
03:09 know, project meaning.
03:12 Let the final battle begin.
03:19 [Music]
03:31 [BLANK_AUDIO]