Hayden Christensen Is Grateful for Newfound Love from Fans: ‘It’s Really Heartwarming’

Hayden Christensen is set to reprise his role as Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader in the upcoming Disney+ series Obi-Wan Kenobi, almost two decades after his last appearance in Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith. And fans are much more enthusiastic about Christensen’s return than they were about his portrayal of the iconic villain in the Star Wars prequel movies.

Hayden Christensen played Anakin Skywalker in 2002’s Attack of the Clones and 2005’s Revenge of the Sith. Although he wasn’t the best part of the films, he wasn’t the worst either. But still, his performance as Darth Vader, one of the most famous villains in movie history, didn’t go down well with fans. George Lucas’s script was also to blame for the underwhelming Star Wars prequel trilogy, but Christensen, being the lead star, received the most hate.

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However, the tide has turned now, and fans are actually looking forward to Christensen’s return in Obi-Wan Kenobi. The Jumper star sat down with William Mullally for an interview recently. When asked how he felt about the appreciation his portrayal of Darth Vader is getting nowadays, especially from the younger generation, Christensen replied:

“It’s just been really heartwarming, I can’t tell you what it means to me but… it’s a really neat thing. I guess the moral of the story is patience.”

The original Star Wars trilogy has set the bar so high that the recent films in the franchise have struggled to meet expectations. Even the George Lucas-directed CGI-heavy prequels turned out to be quite dull and tedious at times. However, after the controversial sequel trilogy, fans are looking at the prequels in a different light. There seems to be a general consensus in the fandom now that Episodes 1-3 are much superior to Episodes 7-9. But that wasn’t the case when they originally came out.

Hayden Christensen received years of abuse from toxic fans for what they deemed a lifeless depiction of a beloved villain. Even Jake Lloyd, who played a younger Anakin Skywalker, wasn’t spared, not to mention Ahmed Best, who played Jar Jar Binks. This is quite reminiscent of the unwarranted backlash against Daisy Ridley and Kelly Marie Tran in The Last Jedi. Let’s hope the viewers realize that the actors are only doing their jobs, and it’s not their fault that they’ve been provided with subpar material to work with. Although, that’s no excuse to hate on the director and writers either.

You can check out Christensen’s interview below.

Hayden Christensen Returns As Darth Vader In Disney+ Series Obi-Wan Kenobi

Disney’s Obi-Wan Kenobi marks the return of two of the most famous characters in pop culture, Jedi Master Ben Kenobi and Sith Lord Darth Vader. Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen will be reprising their roles from the prequels, and the show itself is one of the most anticipated of the year. Talking about his decision to return as Vader after so long, Christensen emphasized how much the character means to him and that he signed on without a second thought to star in Obi-Wan Kenobi.

“It meant a great deal to me. This character that has sort of defined my life in so many ways, and getting to continue my journey with him is just hugely meaningful. There wasn’t a lot to wrestle with; it was a pretty easy decision. When I got the phone call and the invitation to come back, it was a very quick yes.”

Obi-Wan Kenobi will premiere its first two episodes on Disney+ on May 27, 2022.

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