One of the most exciting announcements from Star Wars Celebration is that Hayden Christensen will reprise his role as Anakin Skywalker in Season 2 of Ahsoka. Following this reveal, we had the opportunity to sit down with Christensen to discuss his return to the character after nearly two decades, his appreciation for the darker aspects of Star Wars, and even his favorite Anakin meme.
We started our conversation by asking Christensen about other Anakin stories he'd like to explore on screen. He expressed a keen interest in delving deeper into the Clone Wars era, a period largely covered in animation where Matt Lanter voiced Anakin. "I would love to get to do some more of the Clone Wars-era," Christensen shared. He also mentioned that his friend Ewan McGregor would be interested in revisiting this time period as well. "It's a cool look. It's a cool sort of period in Star Wars and I think there are great stories that we could tell there. So who knows, maybe one day," he added.
Hayden Christensen as Anakin Skywalker in Ahsoka. Image Credit: Lucasfilm
Christensen acknowledged that bringing the Clone Wars era to life would require some "aging" magic, but this doesn't deter him from wanting to continue exploring Anakin's journey, including more of the Darth Vader timeline. "I love this character," he said. "I would love the chance to continue to explore Anakin's story some more and hopefully do the Darth Vader timeline a little bit more too. I think there are more stories there to be told."
Our discussion then turned to "Revenge of the Sith," which is approaching its 20th anniversary on May 19, 2025. Known for its darker themes, Christensen appreciates when Star Wars tackles challenging subjects. "George Lucas made some very bold choices and I love that he did that," he remarked. "However, he did it in a way that we could still digest everything. For example, Anakin is killing younglings, but we don't actually see it. But yeah, I like it when Star Wars goes dark. That works for me."
Reflecting on his return to the role after almost 20 years, Christensen noted the personal growth he's experienced. "Of course it feels different. I'm different," he said. "I've had 20 years of life that I didn't have before, and that just sort of changes your perspective on things. But in a lot of ways, I feel even more connected to Anakin now than I ever have because I've had more time to think about him and sort of try to understand him."
"It's a very unique thing coming back to a role after all of these years and an interesting sort of exercise in the craft of acting, having to sort of account for that passage of time. But I feel very fortunate that I have the opportunity to do it," he added.
As our conversation drew to a close, we touched on the ongoing debate about the best order to watch the Star Wars films. Christensen offered a balanced view, "Not really. I don't know that there is a right way or a wrong way, and I think there's merit to both. I think George Lucas would like you to start with episode one and experience the story in a linear fashion, but there's definitely something to be said for starting with episode four. I've thought about it myself as I have yet to show my daughter the films... I mean she is going to see her dad do some sort of gnarly stuff."
Finally, we couldn't resist asking Christensen about the numerous Anakin memes and which one he enjoys the most. While he's familiar with the infamous "sand" meme and appreciates the one featuring him and Padmé in the field, his current favorite is a meme where Emperor Palpatine pleads with Anakin not to let Mace Windu kill him, and Anakin responds, "He's just reflecting your lightning back you... just stop shooting lightning!"
