Hayden Christensen Would Be Open To Leading A Darth Vader Series
No matter how many years pass, it all seems to come back to Darth Vader. Almost exactly 45 years (!) since making that legendary first appearance aboard the Tantive IV in the original "Star Wars," the biggest bad of them all has maintained an iron grip on our collective psyche throughout multiple generations of fans. And no wonder, given that instantly recognizable visual design, the esteemed voice acting of James Earl Jones, and healthy addition of tragic Shakespearean drama on top of it all, traced all the way back to Hayden Christensen's performance as Anakin Skywalker in the prequel trilogy.
Our last live-action glimpse at Vader came about in 2016's "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story," as he cracked some typically groan-worthy dad jokes and mowed down an entire hallway of Rebel soldiers. The forthcoming "Obi-Wan Kenobi" series will once again bring back the classic villain ... although, this time around, Christensen will reprise his role as the fallen Jedi who's now dead-set on hunting down his former Master. It doesn't appear as if future "Star Wars" stories will be able to resist the temptation to bring the Sith lord back as much as possible (he's next scheduled to appear in the upcoming "Ahsoka" series, as well), and as much as I balk at the franchise constantly looking backwards ... maybe we can make an exception, just this one time.
Christensen's return in "Obi-Wan Kenobi" immediately helped drum up hype for the new series, which is set to premiere tomorrow. But what about leading a new series of his own? By his own admission, the actor would be all for it.
'There's certainly more there to explore'
Ever since Disney acquired "Star Wars" and jump-started the franchise once again, every hint and tease and brief appearance of Darth Vader has managed to set the fandom on fire, leading to renewed calls for either a new movie or a new series of his own. (Never mind that George Lucas himself once gave us an entire trilogy of films fully centered on the villain's origin story, of course!) Thus far, however, Vader has only been relegated to various supporting roles on both the big screen and throughout recent animated shows, novels, and comic books. So what about serving as the main character of an entire story, for a change?
ET Canada (via Total Film) asked Hayden Christensen precisely this question, and the actor's response ought to come as no surprise for someone who seems so genuinely humbled to have been asked to return.
"Absolutely, I think this is a character that resonates in our culture in a very profound way, and there's certainly more there to explore. There are so many other stories that have been told in these other mediums, and I would love to get to continue my journey with him."
"Obi-Wan Kenobi" seems as if it will lead to more storytelling opportunities down the line, which would provide a natural way to keep Vader "alive" (so to speak) for even more appearances in the future. Christensen's answer is diplomatic enough, but it's hard to dispute that legions of fans would love to see a Christensen-starring, Vader-centric project come to fruition.
Until then, we have "Obi-Wan Kenobi" to tide us over when it premieres on Disney+ May 27, 2022.