Star Wars’ Hayden Christensen Defends George Lucas’ Prequel Dialogue

Hayden Christensen in Attack of the Clones
(Image credit: Lucasfilm)

There are popular movie franchises, and then there’s Star Wars. Generations of moviegoers were brought up on the galaxy far, far away, and it remains a vital part of the pop culture landscape. But the franchise isn’t without its faults, and the fans previously threw a ton of shade at the prequel Star Wars movies. And now Hayden Christensen is defending George Lucas’ prequel dialogue.

Hayden Christensen made his Star Wars debut back in 2002’s Attack of The Clones, playing Anakin Skywalker. Fans can’t wait to see what he’ll bring to Darth Vader in the upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi show, and the 41 year-old actor has been reminiscing about the prequels while promoting the Disney+ series. When speaking with The Guardian about his role, Christensen addressed the dialogue in the prequels, saying:  

George Lucas creates such a unique world where everything is so specific, from the way these characters look and the way that they talk, and I feel like sometimes people lose sight of that and they expect them to speak the same way that we speak -- and that's not what we were going for. He was very much like a mentor to me and he was so gracious with his time. I became very close with his family, and my family became close with his family.

He’s got a point. The Star Wars franchise isn’t exactly set in reality, which is why the space opera’s script can sometimes be out there. Hayden Christensen seems to think this is par for the course, and doesn’t agree with the criticism that has come George Lucas’ way since the prequels hit theaters in the early 2000’s. Indeed, the prequels have been getting way more love lately, especially in the wake of the sequel trilogy.

While Hayden Christensen has been the butt of countless Star Wars jokes over the last two decades, it’s sweet to hear how much the franchise and his relationship with George Lucas continue to be. And enough time has passed that the Jumper actor was finally able to return to the galaxy far, far away for his mysterious role in Obi-Wan Kenobi. We’ll just have to see what type of dialogue he gets this time, especially since he’ll be playing Darth Vader in all his evil glory.

As previously mentioned, the Star Wars prequels have been more appreciated in recent years than when they first hit theaters in the early aughts. Still, there are some scenes/dialogue that continue to live in infamy. One big example is Anakin’s lines about hating sand in Attack of the Clones, which were uttered by Hayden Christensen himself. As a reminder, you can check out that quick scene below,

Since Anakin grew up on Tatooine, this dialogue has always turned heads, and has been turned into countless memes over the years. Regardless, Hayden Christensen is back in the galaxy far, far away with the Obi-Wan Kenobi series. That new show debuts on Disney+ May 27th. In the meantime, check out the 2022 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience. 

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.