Actor Andy Serkis, winner of the CinemaCon Vanguard Award, arrives for the Big Screen Achievement Awards during CinemaCon. (Photo : Reuters/Steve Marcus )
Andy Serkis played a joke on audiences about his role as a villainous Jar Jar Binks in the upcoming “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”
The English actor guested on “Conan” Dec. 14, Monday, and responded to rumors he will be playing the Gungan from planet Naboo on the seventh “Star Wars” installment.
Host Conan O’Brien asked Serkis, who is actually playing Supreme Leader Snoke, to shed light on the fan theory that the mysterious villain is actually “Star Wars” character, Jar Jar Binks.
According to O’Brien, the rumors began when “Star Wars” fans noticed the “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” actor’s uncanny resemblance to Binks, who first appeared in “Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace.”
“It’s true. I don’t want to spoil it for anybody,” Serkis responded, tongue-in-cheek, before launching into a Jar Jar Binks impression, quoting the first line of the movie teaser, “There’s been an awakening. Have you felt it?”
The fan theory surrounding Supreme Leader Snoke turning out to be Jar Jar Binks has an entire website, darthjarjar.com devoted to it, according to The Mary Sue. The rumor has been further strengthened by Snoke’s absence in the film’s various marketing materials.
"Star Wars: The Force Awakens" producer Kathleen Kennedy has already confirmed that Jar Jar Binks will not be in the movie, NBC News reported.
Serkis will be joining the veteran cast from the original trilogy, including Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, and Carrie Fisher, together with other newcomers, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley and John Boyega.
