It’s been a long time coming for Hayden Christensen fans, but now, it seems as if our time has arrived! Finally, the rise of Christensen is upon us, and I could not be happier!
Hayden Christensen is back in the Star Wars universe in a big way. Not only is the Anakin Skywalker star coming back for the Disney+ Obi-Wan Kenobi series, but news broke on Friday that Christensen will also be returning as Anakin in the streaming platform’s upcoming Ahsoka series! While the news is probably not that exciting for casual fans of the Star Wars universe, it is a big deal not only because of Anakin and Ahsoka’s shared past, but also because it gives us insight into where the Ahsoka series will take the character.
When Rosario Dawson showed up as Ahsoka in The Mandalorian season 2, fans were instantly wondering how she would play into the future of the Star Wars universe, as Ahsoka in Clones Wars and Rebels is an important part of the fabric of Star Wars lore. For those who maybe only know Ahsoka from her turn in The Mandalorian, she was the Padawan of Anakin Skywalker and, if you think about what Ahsoka says in that series’ episode “The Jedi,” she talks about knowing someone and is clearly referring to Anakin.
So why is all this important/exciting? It means that Ahsoka is going to take place at least in some places where Anakin is still there—unless Ahsoka is conversing with Anakin’s Force Ghost, which we know is Hayden Christensen thanks to George Lucas re-editing the ending of Return of the Jedi.
As The Hollywood Reporter pointed out, the series is taking place in the same time period as The Mandalorian, where Vader is dead, meaning that Anakin Skywalker is gone. So the only way he could play a part in this series is through flashbacks or my Force Ghost theory. And really, that’s the only way that this makes sense. Dawson is playing an older Ahsoka Tano, so unless they flashback to when Ahsoka was training as a teenager, they’re going to have to use Christensen as a Force Ghost, which I’m not going to complain about because that means that he’ll actually look like Hayden Christensen again and not Vader.
Personally, I’m very happy. Christensen is someone I loved as Anakin growing up, and while many vocal fans of Star Wars wanted to criticize his performance, he did a phenomenal job with what he was working with and brought an energy to Anakin that works with how the rest of the Star Wars franchise pans out. The fact that Hayden Christensen is coming back into this universe after the last 16 years and seems happy to play this part once more? It’s a long time coming for fans like me.
(image: Richard Harbaugh/Disneyland Resort via Getty Images)
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