Hayden Christensen almost talked herself out of auditioning for Anakin Skywalker

Hayden Christensen’s anxiety was justified. Darth Vader – thanks to his iconic all-black armor and the legendary voice actor from James Earl Jones – became one of the greatest film villains of all time and a pop culture icon when the character debuted in the original “Star Wars” in 1977.

Although Darth Vader was briefly released at the end of “Return of the Jedi,” for two decades it was left to the imagination of fans to fill in the details of his background story and humanize the character. So when Hollywood finally decided to give us a younger version of Anakin Skywalker, it was a given that a contingent of passionate fans would reject it, no matter how good the portrayal of the chosen actor would be.

Whoever was cast to play the beloved villain, criticism would surely come their way. Even the then 9-year-old Jake Lloyd was bullied for his portrayal of the character in 1999’s “Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace”. Unfortunately, the bullying eventually forced him to retire in 2001. James Earl Jones himself (with a little help from de-aging technology) could have stepped into the role and probably still received some backlash.