MOVIE NEWS – Hayden Christensen shares his thoughts on why the Star Wars prequels aren’t loved as much as the originals, but many fans have a different view…

Although Hayden Christensen’s performance in the Star Wars prequel has caused mixed feelings for several reasons, the actor recently offered a new perspective on why he received such a response. However, it seems that he failed to convince the fans.

In an interview with Empire, Christensen, who also talked about his experience with the Star Wars sequels, opened up about his feelings about the prequels and why he thinks the fans are to blame for the lacklustre reception of the prequels.

When asked about the harmful elements of playing the role, Christensen said: “Because Star Wars has had the cultural impact that it has, these characters almost become public domain, where people feel a sense of ownership over them. The character was criticized, my performance was criticized, and that part sucked. But I also felt like I had some context that perhaps helped a little bit.” He then went on to explain what he thinks happened in the wake of the Star Wars prequels.

“When Episode I came out, there was a lot of excitement that they were making a new Star Wars, and it was going to be the backstory of Darth Vader. But I had friends that were upset that the character was starting off as this young kid. And I watched the film, and I loved it. It was everything I wanted and more. And I didn’t understand the disconnect between the movie that I saw, and the negativity in some of the reviews.”

“In a way that sort of criticism, I think, comes from a certain failure of their own suspension of disbelief.”

“If you’re gonna go sit in a theater, and the opening scroll starts with, ‘A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away’, that’s setting the stage that anything is possible. These people don’t need to sound and behave the way that we might expect. And if you’re going to sit down and think that you’re getting something that is of our current zeitgeist, then you’re setting yourself up for something else. You know what I mean ?”

Christensen undoubtedly makes a valid point about the attitudes of some viewers. However, fans online quickly pointed out a much more important reason behind the backlash. Many people on X have expressed their displeasure with the quality of the Star Wars prequel trilogy. With a particular focus on the acting, dialogues and screenplay. This has long been a major aspect of complaints. Christensen’s iconic co-star, Ewan McGregor, also admitted that the Star Wars prequels weren’t Shakespearean because of the quality of the writing.

Notably, McGregor’s performance is often considered the pinnacle of the prequel trilogy and is one of the reasons why the character of Obi-Wan Kenobi is the timeless fan favourite that it is.

As for Christensen, he’s had some more acclaimed roles since then, but Anakin will always be his standout. Understandably, he tries to protect it. Whether fans agree with it or not, the Star Wars prequels should be left alone for now. The constant attachment to this franchise era and the often renewed waves of criticism do no one any good. So, while fans have the right to criticize what they want, and intellectual property holders can explore either part of the timeline, perhaps it’s time to admit that both are outdated as far as Star Wars history is concerned.

Source: Empire

Or you know, the cringy acting

— Anthony Russo (@Anthony_Russo97) February 28, 2024