Is There A Snoke Connection Between Andor And The Disney Star Wars Trilogy?

Episode 10 of "Andor" — which dropped Wednesday, November 9, on Disney+ — saw the suspected demise of Andy Serkis' Kino Loy character, who was considered one of the best things going for the "Star Wars" prequel. As a result, fans can't stop speculating over whether there's a possible connection between Loy and the other famous "Star Wars" character that Serkis once played: Supreme Leader Snoke from Rian Johnson's "Episode VIII — The Last Jedi."

"Is Andy Serkis being in #Andor related to Snoke?" asked Twitter user @paulkleinyoo on Wednesday. "Seems strange for him to play two significant roles that aren't connected," they said.

At the end of Episode 10, titled "One Way Out," Serkis' Loy is forced to stay behind at the Narkina 5 prison base, where he and Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) are being held, while a mass prisoner escape unfolds. Loy's reason for staying is that he apparently cannot swim, and the only way off the prison base is to jump into a body of water below and get to shore. He disappears into the unfolding chaos inside the prison and isn't seen again. For some fans, the scene is a sign of possible evil things to come for Loy, which leads many to think that a Snoke origin story could soon be on the horizon. But what are the actual chances of this? 

After Episode 10 of "Andor," one of the leading theories being offered up by "Kino Loy is Snoke" supporters is that Imperial forces are going to capture Loy, torture him, and use the prison breakout leader for clone experiments, thus leading to Snoke's creation. "Given that Ep10 development, I could totally see Kino being tortured for his part and being used as an experiment that concludes in the creation of Snoke clones," tweeted Gareth Bartlett. It's an idea that's been floated on social media before, but now it has new weight following the events of Episode 10. 

"Wouldn't it be an amusing twist if it turns out that Kino Loy's DNA sample was used to make a clone of Snoke?" said @heidi_fedor. User @BrenDerlin wrote: "I know the Snoke theories are dumb but I just keep imagining a reveal where there's another Andy Serkis on every other prison level, all competing against each other to be the clone who gets to live. I keep thinking of SHEEV on Disney+ starring Andy Serkis. I know, I'm sorry."

Now, while the Snoke stuff will always be fun for fans to talk about, it's important to actually consider whether there's enough evidence for there to be a true connection between "Andor" and the Skywalker saga. And in order to do that, we're going to have to go straight to the source himself. 

Going into "Andor," Andy Serkis had suspected and actually feared that fans would be led to believe Kino Loy was somehow connected to Supreme Leader Snoke's true identity, to the point where he almost turned down the role because he didn't want to distract from the "Andor" story. But Serkis insists there's no connection. 

"I was very concerned for the fans...[That] the rumor mills, the Snoke theories would start flooding in and people would be sort of starting to piece together, 'Well, is Kino Loy related to Snoke?' — and I have to tell you, he's not!" explained Serkis in a November 3 interview with Jake Hamilton. "Let's just put that to bed, and everyone can just not even have to go on that route," Serkis said. "But yeah, I was slightly concerned." 

For him personally, the parallels between Snoke and Loy were so far apart and nonexistent to Serkis at the time he was offered "Andor” — and his appreciation for Tony Gilroy's "Rogue One" was so great — that it ultimately "overruled" the concerns he had about fans being too confused for him to appear.

"I loved Rogue One, and when Tony Gilroy approached me to do it, I just thought ... Snoke is distant enough in terms of his appearances, being, whatever he represents," Serkis concluded. "This is the opposite end of the spectrum. This is a human character, you know, he has a very sort of strong grounding. So, I felt safe."

Season 1 of "Andor" is slated to wrap up on November 23 with the airing of its 12th episode. Serkis appeared in Episodes 8, 9, and 10.