Hayden Christensen, whom Star Wars fans mainly know as Anakin Skywalker aka the Chosen One, celebrated his 39th birthday yesterday, and the internet has been showing him some love.
It’s been a long and turbulent journey for the Prequel Trilogy and the people behind the heroes from the age of the Republic. A decade ago, fans of that galaxy far, far away would unanimously agree that The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith were terrible movies that in no way honored the legacy of the Original Trilogy. Of course, even then, some people believed that there were redeemable qualities to George Lucas’ vision, but actor Hayden Christensen’s portrayal of Anakin in the latter two films didn’t garner a positive reaction.
Suffice it to say, the actor had to go through a lot of bullying from Star Wars fans and trolls, much like Sequel Trilogy stars Daisy Ridley and Kelly Marie Tran are right now. Though for Christensen and his co-stars, the tables have since turned. In fact, in the past couple of years, especially with the controversial decisions that Disney made on several occasions, fans have been revisiting those movies and finding a new love for them. Specifically, many people now believe that Christensen didn’t deserve a negative backlash for his portrayal of Anakin.
As such, when they caught wind that it was the actor’s 39th birthday yesterday, they took to Twitter to celebrate his time as Anakin and what he meant to the galaxy far, far away. In fact, the response has been so positive that Christensen was even trending on the social media platform.
Check out some of these tributes for yourself below:
I cannot believe I am the same age as Darth Vader. Hayden Christensen turns 39 🎂 https://t.co/4fHIo4oV6r
— Ken Howard (@kenhowardpdx) April 20, 2020
https://twitter.com/johnboyegaswife/status/1252059506651127809
https://twitter.com/tpwkblue/status/1252059491920564224
Happy birthday to my emo prince that I would throw all the sand away for, Hayden Christensen. pic.twitter.com/vIT8YpImoH
— Local Emo Barista (@HiBritneyMonae) April 20, 2020
happy national Hayden Christensen day https://t.co/21PQvqkaFM
— ☤ 𝙂𝘼𝘽𝙔 ☤ loves Nishinoya (@BellonGaby) April 20, 2020
happy birthday hayden christensen, thanks for bringing anakin to life and constantly breaking my heart. guess i’ll watch episode 3 in your honor tonite
— alexis ᵐⁱˢˢᵉˢ ᵗʰᵉ ⁱⁿᵉᶠᶠᵃᵇˡᵉ ʰᵘˢᵇᵃⁿᵈˢ (@f3rrisride) April 20, 2020
Happy Birthday Hayden Christensen or Lord Darth Vader. 😍 pic.twitter.com/C4iZqzIaPO
— Alex (@iamstoni_wav) April 20, 2020
So apparently it’s Hayden Christensen’s birthday, so I’m gonna deliver a hot take.
Hayden’s performance as Anakin was great. Him sounding so monotone a lot of the time was a reflection of how he understood machines more than people and how he didn’t know how to deal with emotions— Nerd Letter (@NerdLetter2) April 20, 2020
https://twitter.com/RMetz14/status/1252055428818587649
4/19/2020
Today Is Hayden Christensen’s 39th Birthday! As Someone Who Loves Star Wars (Especially The Prequels), His Performance Was Unique And His Gradual Transformation Into Darth Vader Was Great! Happy Birthday To One Of The Best Star Wars Characters!#HaydenChristensen— Joshua Hynes (@ProdigyParadox) April 20, 2020
If you’re among those who miss Christensen or even wished to see him make an appearance in The Rise of Skywalker, then all isn’t lost. The actor reportedly has several Star Wars cameos lined up in different projects, including one in Obi-Wan’s Disney Plus series.
So, hopefully, and if all goes well, we’ll get to see him in costume again as Anakin. Fingers crossed.
