Adam Driver Says 'Star Wars: Episode VIII' Is Like 'Empire Strikes   
   Back' - But Not How You'd Expect   
      
   The Hollywood Reporter   
      
   c Courtesy of Lucasfilms 2015/Walt Disney Studios Star Wars: The Force   
   Awakens Still 18 Kylo Ren - H 2015   
      
   For those looking for clues about what to expect from the follow-up to   
   Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Kylo Ren himself, Adam Driver, wants you   
   to know that it's just like The Empire Strikes Back, except not in the   
   ways that you'd expect.   
      
   Calling the screenplay for Episode VIII great during a recent   
   interview with Collider, Driver explained, "it's similar to how The   
   Empire Strikes Back has a different tone [to the original movie]. For   
   that people always go 'oooh, it's dark,' but I don't know that it   
   necessarily is. It's just different in tone in a way that I think is   
   great and necessary but also very clear. [Writer/directorÿRian   
   Johnson] trusts [that] his audience is ready for nuance and ambiguity.   
   He's not dumbing anything down for someone and that's really fun to   
   play."   
      
   The actor also praised Johnson for the way in which he stepped in to   
   take over writing for Driver's character Kylo Ren immediately after   
   his introduction in 2015's The Force Awakens, written by director J.J.   
   Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan.   
      
   "Rian is coming into something that we kind of set up and he just took   
   it to the next level in a really great way," he said. "He wrote it,   
   too, and Rian's writing is so clear. I learned a lot of things about   
   my character through his writing. To understand what J.J. was doing   
   and take ownership from there is kind of a remarkable thing."   
      
   As to what kinds of things Driver learned about Kylo during the   
   production of the movie - or whether the audience will learn them too   
   while watching - the actor was suitably tight-lipped. More will   
   undoubtedly be revealed between now and Dec. 15 2017, when Star Wars:   
   Episode VIII is released.   
      
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