13 Actors Were Considered to Play Anakin in 'Star Wars' Before Hayden Christensen Was Cast (An A-Lister Reportedly Turned the Offer Down!)

Christian Bale

Batman star Christian Bale was heavily rumored to be in the running to play Anakin, and he commented on the rumors during an interview with the London Free Press in 2000. However, his response didn’t give fans too much information.

“You wouldn’t have heard that from me,” he said, via The Guardian. “My lips are sealed.”

Devon Sawa

Devon Sawa was a young actor with starring roles in projects such as Final Destination and Caspar and “a gigantic Star Wars guy” when he auditioned to play Anakin. It became the role that got away for him.

“There were five of us going for it, and then they ended up going with Hayden Christensen from Vancouver, and he did a great job, but, you know, I was heartbroken,” he told ET in 2020.

He reflected on the opportunity, saying, “Especially as a kid, to think, to play young Darth Vader in what was going to be the biggest thing ever, nobody knew what those films were going to be, but it was like, everybody wanted those parts and I want to say I came close.”