Hayden Christensen reveals why he didn't speak to George Lucas before returning as Darth Vader
Exclusive: Hayden Christensen talks playing Darth Vader aga🥃in in Obi-Wan Ke♕nobi

Hayden Christensen is donning that iconic black helmet once again for澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: Obi-Wan Kenobi, returning as Darth Vader after he last played the character way back in 2005. The new series marks the third time the actor has played Anakin Skywalker (barring a brief voice cameo in 2019's澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: The Rise of Skywalker), following on from澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: Attack of the Clones and澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: Revenge of the Sith. Both of those prequel films were directed by Star Wars creator George Lucas, but in the new Disney Plus show, Deborah Chow is at the helm.
We sat down with Christensen and asked whether he𝔍's been ⛎in touch with Lucas about the series or his return as Vader. "I have not, no," he tells Total Film. As for why, though, that all comes down to Chow.
"I really felt like this was Deborah Chow's story, and I really just wanted to follow her lead on this one," Christensen continues. "I think what she's done here is just incredibly exciting." Before Obi-Wan Kenobi, Chow helmed two episodes of澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: The Mandalorian, so this isn't h🦋er first foray into the gal♐axy far, far away.
But, while Christensen didn't🔴 talk to Lucas before filming the show, he did explore his character's appearances outside of the live-action movies, including the animated series. "They did a lot with these characters in that show – Clone Wars and Rebels," the actor explains. "And it's just useful information to 𓆏have. So I went back, and I watched all that stuff, I read some of the comics, and I just tried to immerse myself as much as I could."
Despite how much time has passed since Christensen last wielded a lightsaber, he had no trouble stepping into Anakin's shoes again. "It came back very naturally for me," he says. "This is a character that obviously I spent a lot of time with in the past when we were doing the prequels. It was a good four to five years of 💃my life, and so I know him very well. And it's a character that's stayed with me over the years, too, and one that I've continued to think about."
For much of those years mꦍaking Star Wars, Christensen was playing Anakin outside of Vader's imposing armor, sporting it only briefly at the end of Revenge of the Sith. Was getting to wear the suit again a nostalgic experience, then? "Very much so, yeah," Christensen says. "It brought up a lot of emotions. It was cathartic in a lot of ways. I didn't spend too much time in the suit when we did Episode 3, but getting to come back and do more with it now was just an incredible opportunity."
Choosing to ret🐻urn to the saga also wasn't a difficult decision. "Just the idea that I get to play Darth Vader at this point in his life, it was just a really unique opportunity," Christensen says of what drew him back. "It really didn't take much convincing."
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Obi-Wan Kenobi debuts exclusively on澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询: Disney Plus from May 27. For much more on the series, check out our interviews with McGregor and C🐬hristensen on their favorite m🐬emories from filming the show and 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:how Anakin and Obi-Wan's relat🗹ions𓄧hip has changed, as well as Moses Ingram 🐻on playing the newest Star Wars vil🌸lain, Reva.
For everything else coming soon from the galaxy far, far away, see our guide to all the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:upcoming Star Wars movies and TV shows.