Domhnall Gleeson Interview | Star Wars: The Last Jedi General Hux on the Edge

Desperate times calls for a desperate General Hux. This exclusive Domhnall Gleeson Interview explores General Hux’s role in Star Wars: The Last Jedi. This post is sponsored by Disney. All galactic opinions are my own. #TheLastJediEvent

Domhnall Gleeson Interview | Star Wars: The Last Jedi & General Hux on the Edge

Interview Photo Credits: Louise Bishop of MomStart.com

From riding broomsticks to killing planets, Domhnall Gleeson definitely has had a wide range of amazing movies in his arsenal already. (Arsenal, did you see what I did there?) But transitioning from good guy to bad guy proved to be challenging as Gleeson took on the role of the new Star Wars villain, General Hux. And in The Last Jedi, Hux is on the edge. In this Domhnall Gleeson interview we discuss his character’s journey from The Force Awakens to now, how he feels about following after Peter Cushing, that one embarrassing moment with Harrison Ford, and his thoughts on Star Wars vs. Harry Potter.

The Villain’s Journey

While we enjoy watching heroes overcome challenges and obstacles in movies, we love when the villains suffer too. Domhnall Gleeson explains the changes in General Hux’s character from The Force Awakens to The Last Jedi. And we find out why he loves to watch Hux suffer just as much as we do.

The character arc in the first film, Hux goes from a very good place to a very bad place in terms of his standing in things and Snoke. I think it’s pretty obvious, he wants his place on the throne. He wants to be in charge of Kylo Ren. But he’s in a much worse place at the end of the first movie than he was at the beginning in terms of achieving that goal.

And that’s where we basically start the second movie. You’re just starting the character in a much more desperate place, much more uncomfortable place. I think that’s a good place to put somebody like Hux. Taking a step back from him and thinking objectively, you want Hux to suffer. That is what you want for somebody like that, who behaves like that, and who carries himself like that. And I liked creating somebody that would end up being the feeling you would have for him. So we start with a place where we’re ready to see him suffer.

Getting to A Place of Desperation

So how does Domhnall Gleeson get into General Hux’s character? It’s all about desperate measures.

There’s a desperation about him, which is very unbecoming. Just put yourself in a desperate place, and then say “I’m getting rid of that,” and now I’m pretending that I’m powerful, even though something in there is worried that you’re not. Insecurity, not a solid foundation. And that’s where we tried to start him from.

On Being the Villain After Peter Cushing’s Legacy

It’s hard to top a really good villain. Peter Cushing as Grand Moff Tarkin, he was eerily and epic-ly amazing. So how to you follow those legendary footsteps? With your own twist.

You can’t steal, but obviously [Hux’s] place in things at the beginning of the film is like Peter Cushing’s role in terms of just the scheme of the way the villains are set up. [Hux] would be kind of fulfilling that role a little bit. That very clipped English accent, I liked that. But then you have to go to the real world to find you influences. You can’t take your character notes from other characters. You want to base it on something that’s real, that you can kind of look into. I understood where [Hux] stood in things, but the influences would have come from elsewhere.

And the most interesting version of Hux, which is not there from the very beginning, was the one that’s actually very dysfunctional with Kylo Ren and kind of battling for their place in things. And for favor from Snoke.

Domhnall’s Fan Girling Moment

Cue Indiana Jones music. That’s right, Domhnall Gleeson has fan freak-out moments too and confessed that one time he was caught “green handed” by the legendary Harrison Ford.

I was an Indiana Jones kid, more than Star Wars even. So that was my childhood, Harrison Ford in a different movie. When I went to one of the premieres, Harrison Ford was there and they were giving out these plastic lightsabers to the fans. I picked a green one ‘cause I’m Irish. We were there and just Harrison Ford’s the coolest man in the world. So I was talking to my agent and I was kind of waving the lightsaber around, and I saw Harrison Ford was looking over at me, and I was like, “oh” [gestures a quick lower of the lightsaber to act cool].

Star Wars vs. Harry Potter

That one time Domhnall Gleeson said Harry Potter and Star Wars in the same breath. It’s hard to believe that this one actor has been in some of the biggest blockbuster film franchises in the world, and yet humbly realize that this journey is so much deeper and so much bigger than just him.

Harry Potter was a huge journey, and those films were over ten years. Star Wars has been going on [longer]. There are so many things which are part of growing up, which are part of people’s childhoods. Star Wars would have been the first movie for a lot of people. There’s just something that’s a position of privilege.

The “Art” of The Last Jedi

Star Wars is an artform. Domhnall Gleeson got deep with us, explaining why Star Wars is so relevant still today and why The Last Jedi in particular may be the most modern reflection of our present world.

Most pieces of great art reflect something about the times you live in. I’ve heard that this film particularly, you can really do whatever you want with it in terms of it being contemporary and relatable. I think that there’s never a lack of evil or not evil, never a lack of bad intention in the world, and people only out for their own interest and the interest of the few. That’s been around forever and will always be around. That’s not gonna disappear. But obviously the brilliance of Star Wars is that when you watch it, you can be entertained by the dark side, whereas in real life, that isn’t entertaining, that’s terrifying.

From Harry Potter to Star Wars, this Domhnall Gleeson interview covers living on the edge with a character like General Hux. Have you been following my #TheLastJediEvent Journey? Catch up on the exclusive insider info and interviews right here:

1 day. 1 FLIPPING day left until December 15, 2017 – aka Star Wars: The Last Jedi day.

Are you ready to see General Hux living on the edge (of sanity)?

I was invited to attend an all-inclusive press trip, sponsored by Disney. Be sure to follow Raising Whasians for more Disney insider information, movie updates and entertainment!

Looking for more Star Wars amazingness? Be sure to check out the entire Star Wars: The Force Awakens exclusive interviews: