Disney's Star Wars Era Is Doubling Hayden Christensen's Anakin Appearances
Disney's Star Wars era is doubling Hayden Christensen's Anakin Skywalker appearances with Ahsoka and Obi-Wan Kenobi. Christensen's best known role is as Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, appearing in both Star Wars: Episode II: Attack Of The Clones and Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith. He also had a small appearance as Anakin's Force Ghost in Return Of The Jedi, after George Lucas edited him into the movie in 2004.
Unfortunately, the poor reception to the Star Wars prequel trilogy brought the cinematic franchise to an end for a decade, which also meant Christensen's time as Anakin/Darth Vader was over. Christensen's performance was one of the more negatively received aspects of the prequels, with the actor's career never quite taking off after his role in it, but that is now starting to shift. Disney's Star Wars era has brought back many former cast members from across the original and prequel trilogies, and Christensen in particular is making a real comeback.
Christensen first returned to the saga with a voice cameo in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, heard among the many Jedi who call to Rey on Exegol in the movie's final battle. It's since been announced that Christensen will return for both the Ahsoka and Obi-Wan Kenobi shows, reprising his role as Anakin/Vader in each. This means that, in just a few short years, Disney will have doubled Christensen's Star Wars appearances from three to six. Christensen also received a credit for Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 7, episode 11, "Shattered," but for archival audio from Revenge of the Sith. Although Christensen drew ire from critics and audiences during the prequels, he's largely been forgiven by the fandom, making many well-received appearances at conventions and events such as Star Wars Celebration, and his return to the fold as an actor completes that redemption.
Anakin's slow turn toward the dark side, ending with his tragic transformation into Darth Vader, is one of the most iconic stories in Star Wars lore. Yet, not much on-screen material exists about Anakin during his time as Darth Vader, and there's certainly scope to develop the character much further. The Obi-Wan Kenobi show, about Obi-Wan's travels between the prequel and original trilogies, will most likely explore the titular Jedi's guilt over allowing his Padawan to fall to the dark side. Similarly, the Ahsoka show, about Anakin's Padawan, will hopefully address both Ahsoka and Anakin's perspectives on how they parted ways.
Obi-Wan and Ahsoka used to have very close relationships with Anakin, and they both feel guilt and betrayal over the Sith Lord's choices. Each of their solo shows will not only provide a chance to flesh out these characters more fully, but also shed some light on a previously untouched time in Anakin's life. The original trilogy, and even Darth Vader's cameo in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, do not delve too deeply into Vader's mental state before his final confrontation with Luke. The Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka shows will allow Christensen to better reveal just what Vader thought and did during the time between the prequels and Luke Skywalker's rise in Star Wars, and the latter can also show him post-redemption too, giving Christensen plenty to work with in bringing the character back.