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 thrilling news, we had the opportunity to sit down with Christensen to discuss his return to the iconic role after nearly two decades, his affinity for the darker themes in Star Wars, and even his favorite Anakin meme.
We kicked off our discussion by asking Christensen about other Anakin stories he'd like to explore on screen. He expressed a keen interest in "doing more of the Clone Wars-era." This makes sense, considering that aside from a standout scene in Ahsoka and brief appearances in the films, much of the Clone Wars-era Anakin has been brought to life through animation, voiced by Matt Lanter.
Hayden Christensen as Anakin Skywalker in Ahsoka. Image Credit: Lucasfilm
Christensen added, "I know my friend Ewan would be game for that 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."
While fans would be thrilled to see this happen, Christensen acknowledges that it would "require a little bit of aging" magic. However, this doesn't dampen his enthusiasm for the character, and he remains open to further exploring Anakin's story, including delving deeper into the Darth Vader timeline.
"I love this character," Christensen 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 conversation then shifted to Revenge of the Sith, which is approaching its 20th anniversary on May 19, 2025. Known for its dark themes, Christensen appreciates when Star Wars tackles challenging subjects.
"George Lucas made some very bold choices, and I love that he did that," Christensen 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 nearly two decades, Christensen shared, "Of course it feels different. I'm different. 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."
To wrap up our conversation, we touched on the ongoing debate about the optimal viewing order for the Star Wars films. Christensen offered his perspective, saying, "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."Lastly, we couldn't resist asking Christensen about the plethora of Anakin memes and if he had a favorite. While he's seen the sand meme countless times and enjoys the one with him and Padmé in the field, his current favorite is a meme featuring Emperor Palpatine pleading with Anakin to not let Mace Windu kill him, to which Anakin responds, "He's just reflecting your lightning back at you... just stop shooting lightning!"
