Highlights
- Hayden Christensen convinced George Lucas to include Anakin's Sith eyes, symbolizing his descent to the dark side.
- Fans interpreted Anakin's yellow eyes in Revenge of the Sith as a sign of his unwavering commitment to evil.
- Christensen reprised his role as Anakin in the Obi-Wan Kenobi series, hinting at further exploration of the character's arc.
Star Wars actor Hayden Christensen has opened up about one thing about his character’s appearance that George Lucas disapproved of and had to convince him to put that aspect in his story.
In Revenge of the Sith, fans saw Anakin Skywalker fully taken by the dark side. Everything changed for the character and his blue eyes changed to a snake-like yellow once the character made the transition from good to evil. Despite everything, Lucas remained unconvinced when Christensen, who portrayed the young adult Anakin in the Star Wars universe, initially pitched the idea.
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Speaking about his character’s appearance with Empire Online, Christensen noted that he pitched the idea of his character developing Sith eyes during the important scene. The actor revealed that the script initially never had a mention of his eyes turning yellow. However, as the scene progressed, Christensen believed that his eye color should change to signify his transition. Christensen said, “George and I [were] discussing giving Anakin Sith eyes. Originally, there was no mention of it and George was initially against the idea when I brought it up...A few days later he came back to me and said he thought about it some more and now liked the idea of Sith eyes.” The actor then observed that Lucas eventually liked the concept, but ultimately opted against incorporating the Sith eyes in the scene Christensen proposed.
Instead, Anakin's eyes underwent a transformation signifying his full descent into the dark side when he confronted the Separatists on Mustafar under the orders of the Emperor. The prevailing interpretation among most fans regarding Anakin's yellow eyes in Revenge of the Sith is that they signify his unwavering commitment to the dark path he's treading. Revenge of the Sith turned out to be Christensen’s last outing as Anakin in the film series. However, 17 years later, the actor returned to the galaxy far, far away and reprised his role in the Disney+ series Obi-Wan Kenobi. Initially, fans thought that Christensen would also go on to return to the franchise after last year’s appearance in Ahsoka.
Christensen's return promised continuity between the Disney+ shows and original trilogies. Seeing him reprise his role suggested a deeper exploration of Anakin, aka Darth Vader's character arc and potentially bridging gaps in the narrative. Since then, fans have been requesting Lucasfilm to bring Christensen for future projects as well and it seems the actor is always ready to be a part of the Star Wars universe. Last year, in an interview, Christensen revealed that he would love to do more Star Wars and would return “with a big smile” on his face.” Nevertheless, fans can see Christensen playing Anakin once again as Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace is getting a re-release by Disney on May 3, just one day before Star Wars Day.
All Star Wars films are available for streaming on Disney+.
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Source: Empire
