Since Snoke appeared in the first two sequels, he caused a commotion over who he actually was. Especially after his larger role in The Last Jedi in 2017, fans discussed many possibilities for this supposed Sidious creation. While we may not agree with these 5 theories, we can find some credibility in them alongside their wildness.
5. Snoke Skywalker
One wild theory is that Snoke originated from the severed hand of Luke Skywalker. If we follow this logic, Snoke would thus be a Skywalker.
The Darth Vader #11 comic provides the basis for this theory. In this issue, readers witness Vader on Exego spotting a severed hand in a jar, accompanied by early cloning attempts of Snoke in the background. Palpatine indicates how he could use that floating hand to create “anything.”
This theory has some credibility, then, and caught the attention of the fans in this past forum who evaluated it. As one post specified, “If Snoke was created using DNA from Luke’s hand…then when Kylo betrayed Luke and went to Snoke,” Kylo’s master would be an “evil, twisted version of Luke.”
As this article conveys about the comic issue, however, we are probably jumping to the wrong conclusion by thinking Snoke is related to Luke by DNA. Although we can speculate that Luke’s hand was used to create Snoke, that idea “seems a little too obvious.” The hand was probably meant to create a clone of Luke, as indicated in the Timothy Zahn novel The Last Command.
4. Snoke the Grand Inquisitor
Another theory that sprang up in the past was how the Grand Inquisitor transformed into Snoke.
This theory originates from after the Grand Inquisitor fell to his death after his duel with Kanan in Rebels. In this scene, we can see his presumed final moments.
The idea is that the Grand Inquisitor was burned and deformed by the flames he fell into, but survived to become Snoke. This video spotlights this potential transformation and ponders this possibility, granting it some legitimacy.
This second video likewise provides some credibility by recognizing a similar “height and build” between Snoke and the Grand Inquisitor and the basis for Snoke’s scars. Yet, this commentary ultimately discards this theory as being on the wild side. We may agree with that conclusion, given Snoke’s outlined origins as “an artificial strandcast” forged by loyalists of the Sith Eternal.
3. Snoke as Mace Windu
Another theory that deviates from the Canon background of Snoke is that he was actually Mace Windu. Like the two preceding theories, this one is interesting and strange.
In this scenario, Windu survived his duel with Palpatine but became disfigured by the injections of Force lightning. He emerged as Snoke to seek revenge against Sidious and Luke.
This video explores this premise, first emphasizing how credible it is that Windu survived his fall. Then, we can consider how the two characters parallel one another in age, “facial disfigurement,” and fighting form. For the last area, we may think that it was Windu as Snoke who taught Kylo Ren his Vaapad fighting style.
But, alas, we likely also find this theory too wild in that their complexions are different, Snoke has two arms (whereas Windu lost one in his duel), and height divergence. The commentary here supports the notion of discarding this theory too.
2. Jar Jar Snoke
This theory veers alongside the idea of Jar Jar Binks being a Sith lord. The main difference is that Jar Jar is actually Snoke.
This previous fan discussion provides insights into this possibility. Similar to the Sith theory, Jar Jar is “far from being simply the bumbling idiot he portrays himself as,” but instead “a highly skilled force user.” Likewise, articles like this one pondered the potential of Supreme Leader Jar Jar. Yet, the write-up cast it into the “madness” category.
Was it fair to discard this theory? In many ways, yes. Just like the Darth Jar Jar theory, we find the basis for it to be too outlandish to be real. When writing the prequels, Lucas “intended Jar Jar to appeal to children,” so the likelihood that he was secretly a Sith lord or Snoke is remote. Yet, it’s still an interesting, eyebrow-raising theory.
1. Darth Snokeis/Plagueis
The most compelling and wildest theory, attested to by fans here, is that Snoke was Darth Plagueis, or we could call him Darth Snokeis.
The reasons for this theory include how Snoke had a similar look to Plagueis, shared acumen in dark side knowledge, and followed a trajectory with cloning and immortality. Both seem to be construed from and attuned to deep, dark ancient power. Moreover, we don’t see Plagueis die on screen, so it leaves an opening to Snokeis.
However, the wild side still seems to win out for the reason alone that the actor Andy Serkis, who played Snoke, disavowed this connection. Even before the official background of Snoke was clarified, this theory was also based on the loose grounds of Plagueis’s story being mentioned in Revenge of the Sith. And, we may agree that if Snoke were Plagueis, then he probably wouldn’t have died in The Last Jedi.