Kurt Russell Is Responsible For A Signature Snake Detail In Escape From New York
Kurt Russell has played a lot of memorable characters throughout his career, and one character definitely near the top of the list would have to be Snake Plissken. Russell's Plissken made his big screen debut in "Escape From New York," John Carpenter's sci-fi action movie set in the futuristic year 1988. In Carpenter's film, the island of Manhattan has been converted into a giant maximum security prison. Convicts are sent to New York and forced to fend for themselves, living in the cut-off city and joining various gangs, all of whom seem to be at war with each other. When the President of the United States ends up crashing in New York after Air Force One is hijacked, the government calls in Snake Plissken to save the day.
A former soldier-turned-criminal, Snake has recently been arrested and is forced against his will to rescue the President. A device is implanted within Snake's body that will kill him in 24 hours. If he saves the President, his life will be spared and he'll be granted parole. What's a guy to do but go along with such a crazy scheme? Using a Clint Eastwood-like rasp and sporting an eye patch, Russell plays Plissken as an incredibly cool character, and according to Russell himself, he had a hand in Snake's most iconic accessory.
Call me Snake
While speaking with Men's Health, Russell was asked where Snake's eyepatch came from. The answer: Russell came up with the idea himself. "I pitched it to John Carpenter and he immediately said, 'Yes. Do it,'" Russell recalled. "I knew then that I'd made the right decision to sign on to the movie. Some directors hem and haw, they're like, 'Hmmm. I don't know.' But with John, it was immediate. He trusted me."
Russell and Carpenter first worked together on the TV movie "Elvis," where Russell played the King of Rock and Roll himself. It was the beginning of a beautiful working relationship, and Russell would reunite with Carpenter for "Escape From New York," "The Thing," "Big Trouble in Little China," and finally on the "Escape From New York" sequel "Escape from L.A.," which had Russell once again sporting that eyepatch to play Snake Plissken.
Russell and Carpenter meant to bring back Snake for a third film titled "Escape From Earth," which, according to Carpenter, "was kind of Snake Plissken in a space capsule, flying interstellar." Sadly, the box office disappointment of "Escape From L.A." killed any hope of the potential third film, because life is cruel sometimes. Snake Plissken can tell you that.