5 little-known facts about Hayden Christensen

2. He always hoped to act in the Darth Vader costume

When he was first cast as young Anakin Skywalker, Hayden Christensen didn’t know what director and writer George Lucas had planned for Skywalker’s transformation into Darth Vader. If/when he became the mechanic monstrosity we see in Episode IV: A New Hope, would it be Christensen in the costume, or someone else?

In the original trilogy, it was actor David Prowse in the costume, but the iconic voice of James Earl Jones was what became recognizable for the character. In Revenge of the Sith, Christensen got the opportunity to dawn the costume like Drowse before him.

And by all accounts, he loved it. In an interview from around the release of the movie, Christensen revealed what it was like to dawn the classic costume:

"It was exhilarating… I was really hoping that I was going to get put on the Vader outfit when I was cast in the films, and when we got to Sydney for Episode III George [Lucas] told me that I would have the chance… Getting to put on the helmet and whatnot was really one of the cooler things that I’ve gotten to do so far."

Like in the original trilogy, it was James Earl Jones’ voice behind Vader once his transformation was complete at the end of the film. Still, it was Christensen in the costume for his last moments as Vader in the Skywalker Saga.

However, his time as Darth Vader isn’t over just yet.

In the Disney+ series Obi-Wan Kenobi, Christensen reprises his role as Darth Vader. Whether it’s as flash-backs to pre-Mustafar, as the fully transformed Darth Vader, or both, is unclear as of now. All we have been told is that he’ll be back, and playing a big role in the series.

For Christensen’s sake, we should all hope that he gets to dawn the black again in the series coming to Disney+. That way it’d be just as fun for him as it will be for us watching at home.