Hayden Christensen Says Dave Filoni Understands Anakin Skywalker Better Than He Does
Hayden Christensen has been playing Anakin Skywalker for more than two decades, but even he admits there’s someone who may understand the fallen Jedi better than he does, amd that someone is Dave Filoni.
Christensen first stepped into the role in 2002’s Star Wars: Attack of the Clones before completing Anakin’s tragic transformation into Darth Vader in 2005’s Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith. Years later, he made his long-awaited return to the galaxy far, far away in Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka, and he isn’t finished yet.
Christensen is coming back for Ahsoka Season 2, and while speaking with IMDb at D23, the actor was asked whether he gets to offer feedback to the writers when it comes to Anakin. Apparently, he rarely feels the need because Filoni already has the character dialed in.
Christensen explained: "I don't need to. Dave Filoni I think understands this character in some ways even better than I do. And so when I read the scripts, I'm just elated with what I get to do and say.
“That said, he's still very collaborative, and if I have an idea, I'll share it, and if it works, then we'll do it. And so, we're not too precious about things and we get to explore a little bit. But I try to honor the words that he's written and I don't need to deviate much."
Filoni has also spent a huge portion of his Star Wars career exploring Anakin from another angle, particularly through Star Wars: The Clone Wars and his relationship with Ahsoka Tano.
It makes sense that Christensen would trust his understanding of Anakin, while the collaborative approach gives the actor room to bring his own instincts to the character when inspiration hits.
We already know Christensen will get to play with more than one version of Anakin when Ahsoka Season 2 arrives. The first trailer revealed that he’ll appear as both Force ghost Anakin and the Clone Wars-era version of the Jedi.
That should give Christensen some fun material to work with, especially after the first season finally let fans see him portray a younger Clone Wars Anakin in live action. After all these years, Christensen is getting opportunities to explore parts of the character that the prequel movies never had time to show.
The new season also sounds like it’s cranking up the action considerably. Eman Esfandi, who plays Ezra Bridger, teased at D23 that fans should expect plenty of lightsabers, space combat, Nightsister weirdness, and general Star Wars chaos.
"There's going to be more lightsabers. A lot more lightsaber action. There's going to be some space battles, some space action, and there's going to be witches, and swords, and explosions galore," Esfandi said.
"It's going to be really fun, really fast-paced, and we may or may not hear something about that a little later today. So, stay tuned here at D23 for Ahsoka season 2."
More Clone Wars Anakin mixed into all of that sounds like a pretty cool deal. One of the coolest things about Christensen’s return to Star Wars has been seeing him get another chance with Anakin after so many years away.
Now he’s working with a filmmaker who knows the character’s history inside and out while still giving Christensen the freedom to contribute his own ideas.
Ahsoka Season 2 arrives on Disney+ on January 20, 2027.