Happy 75th birthday, Kurt Russell!
Kurt Russell decided to wear the eye patch at the last second before shooting of "Escape From New York" (1981) for the character of Snake Plissken.
He did not tell John Carpenter beforehand, but Carpenter liked the look for the character, so Kurt Russell on the mystery behind the eye patch:
"Interviewer: Is it true you came up with the idea for Snake Plissken’s eyepatch?
Russell: Yeah. I pitched it to (Escape From New York writer/director) John Carpenter and he immediately said, “Yes. Do it.” 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.
Interviewer: Did you invent a whole backstory? Did Snake lose an eye or something?
Russell: Maybe. I don’t know. [Laughs.]
Interviewer: C’mon, Kurt!
Russell: I really don’t.
Interviewer: Stop holding out on us!
Russell: 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**ked him up really badly. Whatever it is, it still kinda hurts.
Interviewer: Snake does always seem to be grimacing.
Russell: That’s right. He’s always in pain, but he’s just gotten real used to it. It’s a tired, dull ache. Probably comes from whatever radio waves they put into his eye. Maybe they tried to give him a bionic eye and they fucked it up.
Interviewer: That mystery is more fun for the audience too. It keeps us guessing.
Russell: I always try to look for the things that would make me want to see the movie. I want to be in the audience thinking, “Why the f**k is that guy in an eyepatch? They never explain it!” It keeps you on your toes."
(Kurt Russell's interview with Eric Spitznagel, Men's Health, 2019)