Don’t underestimate his power. Hayden Christensen is set to make his return as Anakin Skywalker, aka Darth Vader, in the upcoming Ahsoka series on Disney+.
We already knew Christensen would be back in the famous black suit alongside his former master Ewan McGregor in the Obi-Wan Kenobi limited series, but his role in Ahsoka was revealed today by The Hollywood Reporter. His appearance in Kenobi is one thing, as that series is set 10 years after Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, which saw Skywalker’s rise — or fall — to becoming Darth Vader. But showing up in Ahsoka poses some interesting questions.
Starring Rosario Dawson, the series is spinning off of The Mandalorian Season 2, which is set five years after Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. Of course, that classic film ended with Vader’s very apparent death, so how could Christensen revive him for Ahsoka?
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The two prevailing theories revolve around the fact that Ahsoka, created for the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated film and TV series, was once a pre-Darth Vader Skywalker’s padawan. It’s possible we see some of this relationship play out in flashbacks, or perhaps Skywalker returns as a Force Ghost to help guide his former apprentice.
Either way, fans are likely just excited to have the Sith Lord returning to the Star Wars universe. While Darth Vader has appeared in various forms in recent entires in the franchise, he was last portrayed by Christensen in 2005’s Revenge of the Sith. The actor did, however, provide a brief vocal cameo in Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker.
Not much else is known about Ahsoka, save that Dave Filoni (who’s worked on everything from The Clone Wars to Star Wars Rebels to the upcoming The Book of Boba Fett) is executive producing and writing the series alongside Jon Favreau.