‘Ahsoka’: Hayden Christensen on Playing Clone Wars-Era Anakin, the Meaning Behind the World Between Worlds Scenes, Working With Ariana Greenblatt, and More
In an interview with Dagobah Dispatch, Entertainment Weekly‘s Star Wars-themed podcast, the publication sat down with Hayden Christensen to discuss the actor’s return in Ahsoka. Some of the topics included what it was like to be an older, wiser version of the character, creating the relationship between Anakin and Ahsoka, and getting to swing a lightsaber around again.
A fascinating part of the discussion centered around Anakin’s appearance in The World Between Worlds. Dagobah Dispatch asked about his interpretation of the Anakin shown in Part Five, where he teaches Ahsoka a lesson through various flashbacks. His response highlights how the Anakin shown in the series is the culmination of all of the character’s experiences and how it was a version of the character he always wanted to portray:
“I was getting to play a version of this character that I hadn’t done before. And when we meet Anakin in the World Between Worlds, it’s sort of me getting to play the totality of Anakin and Darth Vader. It’s an understanding of everything that he’s been through. And then when we go back to the Clone Wars flashback, that was just awesome.
That was a version of the character that I was aware of when we were doing the prequels. When we went to go do Episode III, George [Lucas] spoke a lot about what had happened in between Episode II and Episode III. And, of course, that was what Dave Filoni spent a lot of time exploring in the animated world, but I never really got to play that. And I remember when George was describing Anakin during the Clone Wars as being this great hero and a great leader, I thought, ‘Wow, that’s really cool. I wish we could see a little bit of that.’ And we do a little bit. At the beginning of Episode III, you get a taste of it, but then very quickly he becomes consumed with all of the inner conflict again.
And then when I went and was preparing for Obi-Wan, I went and I watched The Clone Wars and I got to see that version of Anakin. I was very taken with it and I thought, ‘Man, that would be really exciting to get to do that in live action.’ And so when Dave told me that we were going to get to do that, it was a real gift and I just felt very privileged to get to do it.”
Next, Hayden Christensen discussed how he approached the relationship between Anakin and Ahsoka. His response expresses deep respect for the work that’s come before and for his costars:
“Establishing the dynamic between Anakin and Ahsoka — the stakes were high because there were a lot of people that were already invested in that relationship and this was the first time that we were getting to see it in live action …
I loved getting to do that. It’s a side of Anakin that is just very compelling, very confident, and I think he is a good teacher to Ahsoka, and you see that he really does care about her. So it was important for us to get that across too. But Rosario [Dawson] and I go back. We met each other when we were both teenagers, so there is a natural kind of rapport there and it was so cool to get to do this with her.
And then with Ariana [Greenblatt] too, when we were doing the stuff with young Ahsoka — she was phenomenal. They couldn’t have cast the role better. So it was all set up for us to win. That was a great feeling, and I just loved how Dave conceived it and guided us through it. And the end result, I was very happy with. I really loved how it came out.”
Lastly, Hayden Christensen discussed his excitement over getting to do more lightsaber action sequences. He expresses the child-like glee he had when he discovered that the script called for it, and how appreciative he was to be able to do it:
“I mean, any chance I get to swing a lightsaber is an awesome opportunity. And when I was reading the script for the first time of episode 5, I was like a giddy little boy. I was like, ‘Oh, I’m going to get to do all this awesome action!’ And I couldn’t sit down. I was pacing around the room just reading the script, and I remember putting it down halfway through and I messaged Dave and I was just thanking him profusely.”
With the Hollywood strikes now over, many of the stars in Ahsoka are finally getting a chance to speak on their work in Ahsoka, including Eman Esfandi and Diana Lee Inosanto who spoke on what it was like joining the show. Actresses Natasha Liu Bordizzo and Ivanna Sakhno also had an opportunity to speak about their time on the show, including the chemistry between them and their characters.
Born and raised in Hawaii, Jay Goodearl runs the YouTube Gaming channel “Good Games, Dude” His channel aims to open up video games to beginners and immediate players and help them understand what makes games the art form that it is.
