Hayden Christensen will play Anakin Skywalker again in Disney's new Obi-Wan series

(Image credit: Lucasfilm)

Actor Hayden Christensen will reprise his role of Jedi-turned-Sith Anakin Skywalker in the upcoming Obi-Wan spin-off show, Disney announced today.

The company made the announcement during its Disney Investor Day 2020 event, where we learned a bit more about the background setting for the show.

Details are still limited, but we now know that the series kicks off with Obi-Wan protecting Luke on Tatooine and that there are Jedi hunters out of there looking to pick off any survivors of Order 66 that eliminated the vast majority of the Jedi Council in Episode III.

In an accompanying video seen by TechRadar, it was explained that Lucasfilm couldn't tell the story of the series "without Anakin and Hayden", emphasizing the importance of the relationship between the two mainline story characters and the far-reaching implications of the pair’s friendship and Anakin’s eventual betrayal. We also saw concept art of a second showdown between Vader and Kenobi.

Hayden Christensen returns as Darth Vader, joining Ewan McGregor in OBI-WAN KENOBI. The Original Series begins 10 years after the dramatic events of Revenge of the Sith, and is coming to #DisneyPlus. pic.twitter.com/9WR2npRUkkDecember 10, 2020

The expanding and contracting Star Wars universe

Lucasfilm and its parent company Disney have had a hard road to plough with the Star Wars universe, attempting both to expand it with shows like The Mandalorian as well as keep the adventures of the original cast going with the new films like Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker. It’s been a challenge to say the least.

The Obi-Wan spin-off series is a continuation of Disney’s work with the latter and fans are optimistic that it could be a return to the series’ roots with classic characters.

Unfortunately we aren’t likely to see the fruits of Lucasfilm’s labor until late next year or even the year after that, as the company still has to finish up the next season of The Mandalorian and other Star Wars related projects it teased on stage today.

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Nick Pino is Managing Editor, TV and AV for TechRadar's sister site, Tom's Guide. Previously, he was the Senior Editor of Home Entertainment at TechRadar, covering TVs, headphones, speakers, video games, VR and streaming devices. He's also written for GamesRadar+, Official Xbox Magazine, PC Gamer and other outlets over the last decade, and he has a degree in computer science he's not using if anyone wants it.