Nearly 20 years after the release of the Star Wars prequel trilogy, Ivan McGregor and Hayden Christensen are both revisiting the plot in preparation for returning their characters.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Ivan McGregor said he watched all nine Star Wars movies to prepare. Hayden Christensen saw it more, following Anakin on an expanded adventure in the Clone Wars and Rise of the Rebels anime.
"I watched [the Star Wars movies] from start to finish," Ivan McGregor told Entertainment Weekly, "all nine movies." Just to get back to that world. The Obi-Wan actor added that it was his first time watching the prequel trilogy since it was first released.
"It's fun to watch the movies we've starred in because I haven't seen them since they came out, not at all. So it's cool and fun to watch and enjoy them without the noise around them when they first came out. ”
Hayden Christensen, who plays Anakin, also watched the films again, but revealed that he knew more about Star Wars, and in addition to the movies he watched the spin-off animations Clone Wars and Rise of the Rebels.
"It's funny." Christensen explains, "They add a lot to these characters in these shows. They did explore these relationships further. There's a lot of fun to learn in the anime. It's fun to get back into this Star Wars world and re-immerse yourself in this ever-evolving and ever-expansive world. ”
The Clone Wars animated series consisted of seven seasons, many of which featured Anakin's experience as a Jedi between Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. In addition, the anime added Anakin to an apprentice named Ahsoka, who later appeared in The Mandalorian and will have her own spin-off on Disney+.
Hayden Christensen has previously said that his Darth Vader in the Obi-Wan episode will be "very powerful," though it's unclear how important a role he will play in the series. In addition, he signed up for an independent episode of "Asoka," giving the actor more reasons to study Anakin.