Obi-Wan Kenobi brought back both Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen to reprise their roles as Obi-Wan and Darth Vader from the Star Wars prequel trilogy, but there was no guarantee that Christensen would actually show much of his face for the Disney+ limited series. After all, Vader wears the mask for a reason after the battle on Mustafar. The third episode delivered the show’s first look at the actor back in his Anakin Skywalker costume, and Christensen opened up to CinemaBlend about suiting up as Anakin again opposite Ewan McGregor.
The news that Hayden Christensen was returning naturally had fans wondering if the show would deliver some flashbacks to the era of the prequel films to actually show the actor’s face, or if it would all be Vader in the suit. It was Obi-Wan’s vision of his former student in the third episode that first featured Christensen back in his Anakin costume. He shared how it felt to wear the Jedi robes again for Obi-Wan Kenobi:
It was so cool to get to put the Anakin costume back on again. That was actually my very first day on set, was that scene that we did. And it was just a special sort of way to come back to Star Wars, looking like Anakin.
Not only did that ghostly vision of Obi-Wan’s give Hayden Christensen the first chance to wear the Anakin costume again, but it was also the very first scene that he filmed in his return to the galaxy far, far away. It makes sense that Obi-Wan’s vision would be of a version of Anakin looking like he did in Revenge of the Sith, and the timing worked out for this to be the actor’s earliest scene for the show. (Christensen also shared his thoughts on the show shedding “new light” on his iconic character.)
In the third episode, Anakin obviously wasn’t really there in the flesh when Obi-Wan had his vision while trying to evade the Empire with young Leia, but it turns out that Ewan McGregor was there for his co-star even though their characters didn’t appear in the same shot. When asked if he filmed the scene on location opposite McGregor, Christensen said:
That was on location, and I always enjoy it when Star Wars goes on location. It sort of adds a different sort of slant to the whole thing. And yeah, Ewan was there, but he was actually wrapped for the day. They had finished his coverage, and it was just so sweet, what he did. He insisted on staying to be a part of my first shot back. Yeah, it was just a very special day.
Considering that neither Vader nor Obi-Wan are going to be doing anything “sweet” for each other at the TV show’s point in the Star Wars timeline, it’s nice to hear about Ewan McGregor going the extra mile to be there for Hayden Christensen in his first scene back. The third episode also delivered the first lightsaber clash between Obi-Wan and Vader following Revenge of the Sith, and Vader certainly wasn’t letting his former master get the high ground this time.
Of course, Obi-Wan did still escape with his life, and it remains to be seen if Vader will ever definitively defeat him in a lightsaber duel. His desperation to get his revenge on Obi-Wan may be the fatal flaw in his chase in this series, since fans know that they’ll both survive to fight again in A New Hope.
Reva has been the main foe actually putting in the legwork of chasing Obi-Wan in the series, and she has been a wild card since her fate hasn't already been decided by a film or different TV show. Actress Moses Ingram even spoke about the perks of playing a new Star Wars character, and a lot has happened since that third episode. As for whether or not Hayden Christensen will wear the Jedi robes again before the final credits roll on Obi-Wan Kenobi... well, only the series finale is left at this point, so time is running out.
Watch the series finale of Obi-Wan Kenobi on Wednesday, June 22 at 12:01 a.m. PT on Disney+. There are plenty of offerings set in that galaxy far, far away available streaming as well, so be sure to check out a Disney+ subscription if you haven’t already for all the Star Wars action any fan could hope for.
