Despite Escape from New York keeping it a mystery, John Carpenter once revealed how Snake Plissken lost his eye. Carpenter had Clint Eastwood in mind for Snake when he first wrote the screenplay, but by the time the film was produced, Clint was way outside its price range.

Instead, eventual leading man Kurt Russell is imitating Clint as Snake, from the husky voice down to his economy of movement. The movie presents lots of mysteries about Plissken, including what happened to his eye or his pal Fresno Bob, or why everybody thinks Snake is already ᴅᴇᴀᴅ.

The John Carpenter movie utilizes these details to make Snake a more enigmatic figure, and the belated Escape from L.A. only raises more questions about his past. Fans have often theorized about what happened to Snake’s left eye, but Carpenter himself once revealed in an interview with The Guardian who was responsible.

John Carpenter Revealed That Escape From New York’s Snake Took His Own Eye Out

Carpenter made this eye-opening reveal about Snake Plissken in 1994

During this Guardian conversation, Carpenter recalls working with Kurt Russell on Elvis and how he came to cast him as Snake. According to the director, he gave Russell a complete rundown of what made Snake Plissken such a badᴀss – including an eye-opening reveal about his missing eye.

So I said, how would you like to play the baddest guy in the world? Who’s put his eye out himself, and doesn’t care about anybody and he’s caught between a police state and a prison. And in the end, he doesn’t save the world; he throws away the world’s salvation and walks off. He said ‘Great, I’m aboard!’

Carpenter and Russell have been asked many times over the years how Snake lost his eye, but they’ve always kept quiet on the topic. Now, Carpenter may be joking when he states Snake took his own eye out, but in the context of the interview, he appears to just be recounting his early conversations with Russell.

Carpenter and Russell worked on developing the role after the actor came abroad, defining Plissken as someone who doesn’t care about anybody and is only focused on living through the next 60 seconds. The idea that it was Snake who took out his eye only adds to his toughness, though sadly, Carpenter doesn’t reveal why Snake did so.

… an unused Escape from L.A. draft revealed that Snake took out his own eye over a woman.

One possible answer could lie in the original, unproduced draft of Escape from L.A., penned by writer Coleman Luck. Carpenter spoke with Luck before he began writing that draft, which revealed Snake put his eye out over a woman. The suggestion is that Plissken needed to weep, but “… tears weren’t enough.”

The Escape From New York Novel Had A Different Origin For Snake’s Eye Injury

Snake Plissken lost his eye during World War 3

If Carpenter’s recollection of telling Russell that Snake took his eye out is accurate, it does raise some questions. For one, Russell has taken credit for giving Snake his eyepatch, apparently inspired by John Wayne in True Grit. In 2019, he told Men’s Health that the patch was intended to make viewers mull on Snake’s backstory.

I think it should be mysterious. That was the point. We know he was a war hero. But what happened to him? What’s underneath that eyepatch? Maybe he was hit with an infrared beam and it burned his retina and f***ed him up really badly. Whatever it is, it still kinda hurts.

If it was Russell who pitched an eyepatch for Snake, the question is whether Plisskin was always one-eyed in Carpenter’s script, or if the character was modified after Russell’s suggestion. Perhaps there was meant to be scarring over his left eye instead, before the eyepatch was introduced.

Series devotees looking to dive deep into Escape from New York should check out the novelization by Mike McQuay. This digs into details that are left vague in Carpenter’s film, including Snake’s war hero backstory and how he became so disillusioned with America.

The book reveals his parents were killed by the police state, and that World War 3 was fought with nerve gas instead of nukes. Snake lost his eye to nerve gas during a mission, when his goggles cracked and it leaked in. It ate away at his eye, while the damaged optical nerves left him in constant pain.

This aligns with Russell’s idea of Snake having a damaged eye, with the pain being an ever-present reminder of his past. Carpenter and Russell are unlikely to ever give an origin for Snake’s missing eye, with the novel being the closest thing to a canonical answer.

Escape From New York’s Deleted Opening Underlines Why Snake’s Backstory Is Best Left A Mystery

Plissken doesn’t need an origin story

Escape from New York’s original opening saw Snake and a pal robbing the Federal Reserve; Plissken’s friend is sH๏τ down escaping while Snake is arrested trying to save him. In isolation, it’s a good opening and sets up the movie well, but it was removed after test audiences complained that it wasn’t needed.

Snake is better left as a mystery, since any origin story or explanation for his missing eye is bound to disappoint.

And they were right; Escape from New York works just fine without this prologue. Snake arriving at the New York prison in cuffs is the best way to meet him, since Snake appears like a post-apocalyptic version of Eastwood’s Man with No Name. Snake is best left a mystery, and any origin for his missing eye is bound to disappoint.

The implication that Snake did it himself is intriguing, but again, the film doesn’t need to reveal this. One of the concerning things about the stalled Escape from New York reboot was the plan to reveal Snake’s backstory and how he lost his eye.

Just like Eastwood’s Western characters that Plissken was so inspired by, the less backstory the outlaw has, the more intriguing he becomes. Carpenter drops snippets of info about his past for viewers to draw their own conclusions, and that’s how it should be.

Carpenter’s reveal to The Guardian that Snake’s missing eye was down to self-mutilation is vague enough to work in this sense – but I don’t want to know anymore either. Escape from New York gave just the right amount of background info on Snake, but he’s the kind of character who should speak through his actions.

Source: The Guardian/YouTube, Men’s Health