Snoke

"There has been an awakening. Have you felt it?"

- Snoke to Kylo Ren

Snoke was a Force-sensitive male individual who served as the Supreme Leader of the First Order approximately thirty years after the Battle of Endor. He had a distinctive, idiosyncratic bone and facial structure. Snoke was a powerful figure, skilled with the dark side of the Force, who had trained at least one Force-sensitive, Kylo Ren, as an apprentice.

Biography
"It is where you are from. What you are made of. The Dark Side—and the Light. The finest sculptor cannot fashion a masterpiece from poor materials. He must have something pure, something strong, something unbreakable, with which to work."

- Snoke

Snoke was active during the Clone Wars and had several apprentices before he became invested in the Skywalker bloodline, believing General Leia Organa and Han Solo's son Ben, the grandson of Darth Vader, had the right balance of the dark and light sides of the Force in him.

Leia was aware of the influence Snoke could have on her son, but did not inform Han, believing he would not understand and that as a Force-sensitive, it was her responsibility to keep Ben away from the dark side. Eventually, Snoke turned Ben to the dark side, anointing him Kylo, master of the Knights of Ren, and ordered him to destroy Luke Skywalker's revived Jedi Order. Though Ren succeeded in slaughtering the entirety of the fledgling Jedi Order, Skywalker managed to escape into hiding.

Shortly before the Battle of Starkiller Base, Snoke summoned Kylo Ren to discuss an awakening in the Force, and he ordered Ren to kill his father to overcome his temptation by the light. In Ren's search for Skywalker, he captured a scavenger named Rey, who had seen the final piece of the map to Skywalker's location. Snoke was later upset to hear that the girl resisted Ren's interrogation. Ren defended that Rey was strong in the Force albeit untrained. As the Resistance base had been discovered, Snoke ordered Ren to bring Rey to him. When the destruction of Starkiller Base by the Resistance pilots was inevitable, Snoke ordered General Hux to bring Ren to him in order to complete his training.

Personality and traits
"Even you, master of the Knights of Ren, have never faced such a test."

- Supreme Leader Snoke to Kylo Ren

Snoke was the Supreme Leader of the First Order, and appeared to be a calculating and reserved military leader as well as a powerful master of the dark side. Kylo Ren of the Knights of Ren described Snoke as "wise", while Han Solo and Leia Organa believed he was manipulative and that he exploited Force-sensitive individuals, such as Kylo Ren, only for their power. Snoke was very old, having a vast knowledge of the past and of the Force. He displayed tendencies unusual for practitioners of the dark side, displaying an interest in Kylo Ren due to his embodiment of a balance between both the light and dark sides of the Force, as opposed to only one aspect.

Snoke was very thin and frail with large hands. His hologram used on the Starkiller Base projected him several times larger (around 25 feet) than his natural appearance, towering over Kylo Ren and General Hux. Snoke had an elongated face with pale, scarred skin and dark black eyes. He sported a large scar from the top of his head, all the way down to his brow. Snoke also had what appears to be a scar or burn on his right cheek that causes his mouth to be contorted. Snoke wore a simple cloak similar to those worn by Sith Lords. Snoke tended to speak slowly and enunciate his desires with a forceful undertone.

Snoke showed little emotion, appeared very calm, and didn't appear to be in any form of worry or distress despite the circumstances against him and the First Order. When Starkiller Base was being destroyed, he calmly expressed his wishes without showing any form of anger or annoyance, a stark contrast to his apprentice Kylo Ren, who is prone to violent outbursts when faced with frustration. He also seems to have a large dislike of Kylo Ren's uncle, Jedi Master Luke Skywalker, believing him to be a threat to the First Order in that of re-building the Jedi Order.

Behind the scenes
Snoke is portrayed by Andy Serkis in the film Star Wars: Episode VII: The Force Awakens using motion capture. Snoke's distinct voice was first heard in the movie's first teaser trailer. His name was officially unveiled on May 28, 2015.

Snoke's appearance underwent many changes throughout the development of the film, with the character's final appearance not being decided on until October 2015, two months before the film's release. J.J. Abrams and Neal Scanlan did want the character to look old and decrepit like Darth Sidious, and even considered making him female.

Appearances

 * Before the Awakening
 * Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens
 * Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens novelization
 * Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens junior novelization