Hayden Christensen Talks Anakin Skywalker’s Return
While the live-action Star Wars series Ahsoka understandably focused on the titular former Jedi and her Star Wars Rebels friends, it was the return of Hayden Christensen’s Anakin Skywalker that had audiences sitting on the edge of their seats.
For the first time (chronologically) since Return of the Jedi, audiences got to see a redeemed Anakin Skywalker.
In Ahsoka, Anakin’s former apprentice finds herself in The World Between Worlds, where she confronts the spirit of her former Master. What exactly Anakin was, however, remained unclear. Was this a Force ghost? The spirit of Anakin Skywalker? Or, some manifestation of the struggle going on inside Ahsoka’s troubled mind.
Hayden Christensen Weighs In
Christensen, for one, admitted that he played the role was a deliberate sense of uncertainty.
“That’s the beauty of how the episode is constructed, in my opinion,” the actor says.
“Inevitably, the audience has to question what it is they’re watching. Is this really the World Between Worlds? What is the World Between Worlds? Is this actually the spirit of Anakin Skywalker, or is this all in Ahsoka’s subconscious and we’re just going down the yellow brick road as she’s drowning and fighting for her life? I think that the episode provides a few really good clues, but it doesn’t spell it out for you.”
All About Ahsoka
As for Ahsoka creator Dave Filoni, what matters most is what Ahsoka takes away from the encounter. The newly-named CCO of Lucasfilm says that he defers to George Lucas as the definitive storyteller when it comes to Anakin. Instead, he says, the encounter is all about Ahsoka.
“My feeling about Anakin is that George resolved everything about Anakin. I don’t think I have anything to do there. I’m not trying to add anything to that,” he says. “Everything Anakin’s involved with is about her. It’s about her point of view on Anakin. It’s about what Anakin taught her. He’s there in more of an Obi-Wan role that we saw in the old movies.”
What Is Anakin In The World Between Worlds?
While Filoni says that Anakin Skywalker’s story is over, in Ahsoka the former Jedi Knight seems to be continuing his battle with the Dark Side. While Anakin initially appears as an all-knowing Jedi sage, flashes of Vader lash out at Christensen.
“There’s a lot there to unpack, potentially,” Christensen says. “I was getting to play a version of this character that I hadn’t before, and that was the all-knowing, all-powerful Jedi master who could wield both sides of the force—light and dark—at will, and maybe has the power to save Ahsoka’s life, which also is very interesting because that’s the power that he was trying to achieve when he pledged himself to the dark side.”
Anakin Has Been Watching Over Ahsoka
In the final scene of the series, the Force ghost of Anakin watches over Ahsoka and Sabine on the planet Perridia. According to Filoni, Anakin has been watching over Ahsoka since his redemption, she just couldn’t see him.
“Anakin…of course he’s there with her,” Filoni says. “He’s always been there with her, but she just couldn’t see it. She couldn’t feel it. And she didn’t know. She had isolated herself and made herself alone because she was afraid.”
“He has done a great deal to alleviate that fear in her. And so there’s a moment. I think he’s proud of her in the end. He sees that she’s going to be a better mentor. I debate Force ghosts with people all the time. To me, what they are mainly is inspiration. You have people in your life that I’m sure have inspired you. And you feel that all the time. You feel that when you need it.”
Hopefully, we will see how Ahsoka and Anakin’s story continues in Ahsoka Season 2.
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