Hayden Christensen's Anakin Skywalker is finally getting his flowers and we are so here for it

The Star Wars prequel trilogy, once the most mocked corner of the franchise, is having a genuine full-throated cultural moment.

Fans who grew up with The Clone Wars and Revenge of the Sith are older now, louder now, and they are making their love known. Now Revenge of the Sith has climbed into the top 10 most-watched movies in the world on Disney+.

And for its 20th anniversary theatrical re-release, the film became the second highest-grossing re-release in cinema history, outperforming the opening-day numbers of every previous Star Wars re-release, including Return of the Jedi and The Phantom Menace, and doing it without the 3D ticket price bump that helped films like Titanic and Avatar in their respective comebacks. It came close to the $900 million global mark. Last year. For a film that came out in 2005.

The prequels were never as bad as the Internet said

At the time of their release, the prequel trilogy got hammered. Critics were harsh, long-time fans were louder. The films performed well at the box office regardless, but the cultural conversation around them was brutal.

So what changed? A generation grew up. Kids who watched The Phantom Menace in 1999 and Revenge of the Sith in 2005 are adults now, and they didn't have the same baggage as fans who wanted the prequels to be the original trilogy. They just saw the story for what it was. The tragedy of a young man torn between love and fear, between duty and desperation, slowly losing himself to the dark side. They saw it through The Clone Wars animated series, which deepened and humanised Anakin in ways the films alone couldn't fully do. And when they came back to the live-action prequels with fresh eyes, they found something genuinely worth loving.

Ewan McGregor, who played Obi-Wan Kenobi, once described the backlash as an "unpleasant experience," saying the films were "being hammered" every time they came out. But he also said, alongside Christensen, that the prequels were always appreciated by the generation they were made for. That generation just needed to get old enough to speak up.

And with all of it, Hayden Christensen's Anakin is finally getting his flowers

Hayden Christensen played the most important character in the Skywalker saga, the Chosen One, the fall of the Jedi, the origin of Darth Vader, and he got torn apart for it. His performance was called wooden and his dialogues were mocked in memes. His character’s emotional choices were written off as bad acting instead of the deliberate portrayal of a young man barely holding himself together. After Revenge of the Sith wrapped in 2005, Christensen largely stepped away from Hollywood. He bought a farm in Ontario and went quiet.

He never seemed bitter about it though. In interviews he was honest: "The character was criticised, my performance was criticised, and that part sucked." But he also held onto the belief that George Lucas had built something real, and that it would find its audience in time. He said the films "just needed a little bit of time to ferment in our popular culture." Patient words, for someone who had every reason not to be.

Then came Star Wars Celebration 2023, and everything became so much clearer. Christensen walked onto that stage and thousands of fans gave him a standing ovation. Videos of him visibly holding back tears spread everywhere. Twenty years of belated recognition all at once, and you could see it on his face. He called the fan response "very cool" (classic Christensen understatement) but also said it "feels like vindication for the work that we did. Everyone that worked on those movies thought that we were part of something special."

He was right, they were indeed part of something special. We just took too long to say so.

Hayden Christensen's return to Star Wars and what comes next

In 2022's Obi-Wan Kenobi, Christensen returned as both Anakin in flashbacks and as Darth Vader in the main timeline, suiting up in that iconic black armor for the first time in nearly two decades. And then in Ahsoka season 1 (2023), he appeared in the World Between Worlds, reuniting with his former Padawan Ahsoka Tano in one of the most quietly remarkable pieces of Star Wars storytelling in years: Anakin as a Force presence guiding Ahsoka through her fears, showing both his warmth and his shadow at once. It was called some of his best acting. I'd agree.

There was also a special 20th anniversary screening of Revenge of the Sith at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles in April 2025, where Christensen and Samuel L. Jackson surprised the audience. Jackson walked out to thunderous applause and said: "Twenty years later, I can hardly believe that we're still as popular, as happenin', as we are." Christensen told the crowd he had "so many amazing memories" of making the film. The audience, full of red lightsabers, went wild.

And it's still not over. At Star Wars Celebration Tokyo in April 2025, Christensen confirmed Anakin will be back for Ahsoka season 2, which, with filming underway, looks set for an early 2027 release. Rosario Dawson, who plays Ahsoka, said simply: "I'm so grateful he's coming back."

The story of Hayden Christensen and Anakin Skywalker is, I think, one of the more quietly meaningful arcs in modern pop culture. A young actor did serious, committed work on one of the biggest stages imaginable, got criticised heavily for it, stepped back with grace, and waited. And the world slowly, then all at once, caught up with him.

Revenge of the Sith is now a top 10 Disney+ film worldwide. And Anakin Skywalker, the Chosen One, the fallen hero, the heart of the Skywalker saga, is being seen clearly, finally, the way he always deserved to be.

Some things just need a little time.

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