Adam Driver Is Surprised 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' Made Him Popular

Prior to the return of the Star Wars franchise in 2015, Adam Driver was still a relatively well-known name among cinephiles. He rose to prominence in his portrayal of Adam Sackler on HBO's Girls, a role in which he received three Emmy nominations for.

Still, once The Force Awakens hit the silver screen — Driver was instantly transformed into a household name for his portrayal of Kylo Ren, the son of General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher) and Han Solo (Harrison Ford). Driver's popularity because of the franchise is still something that surprises the actor.

"I was aware that more people would see it than see most things I do, but I don't think I could have anticipated how often I'd get recognized because it's so different for every person," Driver told Vulture. "I'm very tall and I look a certain way. I can't blend into a crowd."

Driver is a person people have often-times described as serious and intense, but according to the actor, he's not entirely sure where that comes from.

"I like to stay focused on set but it's not because I have a process that I'm imposing on everybody else," Driver reflected. "Sometimes you have to be more focused in between scenes because what's happening is that, on something like Star Wars, it's pure comedy in between takes."

"It's stormtroopers running into walls because they can't see through their helmets. So I don't know where the intense thing came from."

So far, Driver has appeared in two Star Wars movies — The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi — and is slated to reprise his role at least one more time in Star Wars: Episode IX, which happens to be in production now. According to Driver, he and Episode IX director JJ Abrams are working on "something in particular" for Kylo Ren.

"That's hard to say because we're working toward something in particular with that character," Driver shared. "I don't want to give anything away."

Abrams previously directed The Force Awakens, with the filmmaker having co-written the script for Episode IX with frequent collaborator Chris Terrio.

In addition to Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Daisy Ridley, Lupita Nyong'o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, and Billie Lourd will reprise their roles from previous films in Episode IX. Billy Dee Williams is also set to return as Lando Calrissian, a role he hasn't played since 1983's Return of the Jedi.

Are you looking forward to Star Wars: Episode IX? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

Episode IX zooms into theaters on December 20th, 2019.