Hayden Christensen craves more Star Wars, says there is a lot of Darth Vader to explore

Many of us continue to bash the Star Wars prequel trilogy: it’s coarse and rough and irritating and – sorry, but that line and its delivery remain some of the worst in the entire saga. The hate for Jake Lloyd was one thing (come on, the kid was nine!), but Hayden Christensen was a big boy and could handle it from the legion of Star Wars fans, no matter how dreadful the dialogue was. And to prove it, he reprised his role as Anakin Skywalker (aka Darth Vader, in case ya didn’t know) for Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka; and if given the chance, he would jump at even more opportunities to do so.

While Hayden Christensen expressed gratitude for being invited back into the Star Wars franchise for the Disney+ shows, he hopes it was just the beginning. “I would love to get to do more, and I’d love to get to continue with Star Wars and we’ll see. I don’t know what the future holds, and if such an opportunity presents itself, I’ll be there with a big smile on my face. And if it doesn’t, I feel really grateful for getting to come back and getting to do the work that I did in both Obi-Wan and Ahsoka.” He added, “It has just been really nice to get to come back and do more with the character that has meant so much to me and that I really care about. And that has had such a significant impact on my life.” Christensen has been open about his interest in reprising Darth Vader before, saying there is so much to explore.

As for his own take on the Star Wars prequels, Christensen had a bit of a hot one, saying they “aged well.” “I look back fondly on those films and the work that we did. Any time I watch a performance of mine, it’s hard not to be self-critical, and ‘I wish I had made this decision versus that decision,’ and that’s always going to be the case.” Christensen was heavily criticized for his performance in Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith; and while we can blame his acting directly, he has given strong performances in movies like Shattered Glass and Life as a House and so we can’t ignore the script and direction. And while he somewhat redeem himself with the Star Wars series, the question is, could Hayden Christensen handle any future projects in the role?

How did you feel about Hayden Christensen reviving Darth Vader for Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka? Was his performance stronger than it was in the prequels?