Anakin was born around 41 BBY on an unknown world, but was raised on Tatooine from the time he first came to be there as an infant or small child. Whatever world he had been originally born on, Tatooine was the only home he ever knew. His mother, Shmi Skywalker, claimed that she had become pregnant with him without having interacted with any father. Qui-Gon Jinn interpreted this as being part of a prophecy about the Chosen One who would "bring balance to the Force". The wise Jedi Master suggested that the midi-chlorians might have conceived him. In fact, Anakin had a midi-chlorian count of over 20,000, which was even greater than that of Senior Jedi Master Yoda.

Childhood and Discovery

Like his mother, Anakin was a slave of a curmudgeonly scrap-shop owner named Watto. When Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jar Jar Binks, Padmé Amidala, and R2-D2 encountered him, he was a kind, selfless nine-year old chattel to Watto, who had won Shmi and Anakin from Gardulla the Hutt on a podracing bet nearly seven years earlier. Even at a young age, he had a reputation for being able to build or repair anything. This was evidenced by the creation of his own protocol droid C-3PO, as well as a podracer, each from salvaged parts, and both built by the time he was nine standard years old. A child prodigy, Anakin excelled at mathematics and engineering.

Anakin was also adventurous, frequently he would risk his own well being to help those who needed it, with little forethought, or regard for what the consequences might be. When he was only 5 years old, Anakin scaled an immense dune to chase away a heard of banthas from hunters who intended to kill the animals. A short time before the 32 BBY Boonta Eve, Anakin, his friend Kitster Banai, and several other youths, narrowly avoided a potential disaster. Hearing of children who had been captured and imprisoned by Sebulba, in hopes of being sold to Gardulla the Hutt. The children disguised themselves as Jawas, sneaked into Gardulla's estate and freed the Ghostling children. This trait would prove to be one of the defining characteristics of Anakin's personality.

Leaving Tatooine

Qui-Gon Jinn was able to win Anakin's freedom based on a clever wager that entered the boy in a podrace. Normally, Humans lacked the fast reactions needed to operate such a tremendously high-speed land vehicle. However, Anakin's latent Force sensitivity manifested in the form of limited prescience, which gave the impression to others that the boy had lightning-fast reflexes.

Although Anakin was freed, the Jedi were unable to obtain Shmi's release as well. Even after the crisis in which Anakin and his new companions were entangled ended victoriously in the Battle of Naboo, neither the Jedi nor the Republic made any effort to emancipate her. Anakin's duties as a Jedi prevented him from freeing his mother himself, though she eventually obtained her freedom from Watto through the aid of a moisture farmer named Cliegg Lars.

The revelation of Anakin's gifts cemented Qui-Gon Jinn's belief that he was indeed the Chosen One, though many on the Jedi Council were skeptical. Qui-Gon asked the Jedi Council to allow him to train Anakin as his student, after his current apprentice, Obi-Wan, completed the trials necessary to become a Jedi Knight. This request was denied - Anakin was much older than usual, and the Council was concerned that his prior experiences would interfere with his training. In particular, he exhibited much fear and anger, left over from his days as a slave, and further compounded by the separation from his mother and home. They believed he would simply not be able to master the level of emotional detachment required by a member of the order. With no where to go on Coruscant, and no way to get back to Tatooine, Anakin followed his new friends on their mission to free Naboo.

Ultimately, Anakin ended up fighting in the Battle of Naboo, in the vicious starfighter battle above the planet. He helped to lead Naboo and Gungan forces to victory over the Trade Federation by single-handedly destroying its flagship, the Droid Control Ship and rendering the Trade Federation's ground forces inactive. However the celebration was tainted as Qui-Gon had been slain by the Sith Lord Darth Maul. As he lay dying Qui-Gon urged Obi-Wan to train Anakin. Anakin's heroic efforts during the battle, combined with Qui-Gon's last wish changed to the Council's opinion, and reluctantly they allowed Obi-Wan to begin Anakin's training.

Though quietly the Council was concerned that Anakin was much too difficult a student for the young Obi-Wan. Meanwhile, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine promised Anakin that he would "watch [his] career with great interest." This would be the beginning of a long friendship between the young Jedi and the new ruler of the Republic.

Another politician, Padmé Amidala, was one of Anakin's first glimpses of the galaxy beyond Tatooine. He was fascinated with her as a child, and as he grew to adolescence, this developed into a tragically flawed romance. They would eventually have two children, Luke and Leia, both of whom later became central figures in the Rebellion and New Republic eras.

Adolescence

As a young adult, Anakin developed as arrogant and somewhat socially awkward, doubtless in part because of his rapid transition from scrapyard slave to rising star of the Jedi Order. His natural abilities placed him leaps and bounds above his peers, and this fed his ego as well as distancing himself from other learners of his age. He frequently showed off, and displayed little respect for Obi-Wan, whom he partially viewed as inferior. Despite this perception, he did state that Obi-Wan was like a father to him and he claimed he had the wisdom of Master Yoda and the power of Master Windu but this praise may have been just another expression of Anakin's own arrogance, as he amended that he himself was "beyond" Kenobi in many ways.

Anakin's early friendship with Palpatine continued, with the Chancellor lending Anakin a sympathetic ear, and saying things to further fuel his pride (e.g. "I foresee you will become the greatest of all the Jedi, Anakin, even more powerful than Master Yoda.")

Reunited with Padmé

After an attempt on her life, Anakin was assigned to guard Padmé, who was now the Senator for Naboo. He had not seen her in 10 years. His childhood fascination with her had turned into a powerful infatuation. In conversation, he revealed his affection for her, a distrust of the political process, and his view of the need for one strong leader. He fell in love with Padmé, and she with him. Both seemed entranced with the other and their different social castes. Anakin's pursuit of this relationship was in violation of Jedi tradition, which held that although Jedi are not required to be celibate, they must avoid attachment in their relationships.

Anakin suffered recurring nightmares about his mother, Shmi, and went against the spirit of his orders to guard Padmé by bringing her to Tatooine to find Shmi. After speaking to Cliegg Lars, the moisture farmer who had freed and married Shmi in the years since Anakin had been away, he found that she had been carried off by Sandpeople, and set out in pursuit on a speeder bike. The young Jedi discovered their camp, and slipped into the tent that contained his mother, most likely locating her with his Jedi senses. Battered, sleep-deprived, and dehydrated, Shmi Skywalker died in his arms, presumably of massive cardiac failure.

Anakin allowed the shock of her death to catalyze an explosion of his long-nursed anger and selfishness. He flew into a rage, killing everyone present - even, as he confessed to Padmé later, "the women and children." A number of Jedi, including the recently dead Qui-Gon Jinn, sensed the shock of this massacre, amplified by Anakin's powerful Force presence bordering the Dark Side. Padmé was clearly troubled by what he had done, but had invested herself too much in him to be truly repulsed; she tried to soothe him with sympathy and told about Anakin's hideous act to no one. This fit with the mutual delusion and codependency that unfortunately characterized their relationship.

Anakin learned that his friend and mentor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, had been taken hostage by the Geonosian-engineered Confederacy of Independent Systems forces. Ignoring Master Windu's words, he took Padmé with him to save Obi-Wan. They, too, were soon captured and sent to meet their demise in a gladiatorial execution arena. The timely arrival of the Jedi, and eventually the clone troopers, allowed both of them to escape and fight in the ensuing Battle of Geonosis. Anakin and Obi-Wan pursued Count Dooku, Sith Lord and mastermind of the Confederacy. Dooku unleashed a powerful barrage of Force lightning on Anakin, knocking the youth unconscious. Anakin then lost his right arm in a lightsaber battle with the more experienced Dooku. It was replaced a short while later with a mechanical prosthetic.

In the first days of the Clone Wars, Anakin married Padmé in a secluded lake retreat on Naboo. They would later struggle to keep this illicit relationship secret.

The Clone Wars

The Clone Wars saw Anakin's star continue to rise, and his exploits and accomplishments became legendary. An amazing starfighter pilot, Anakin flew missions over Kamino, Balamak, Virujansi, and elsewhere, cementing a reputation for his unparalleled skills. He custom-modified his Delta-7 Aethersprite starfighter into a unique and deadly vessel that time and time again outperformed any ship on the battle field. Dubbed the "Hero With No Fear", war molded Anakin into a man, but it continued to feed his pride. It was also a lie. Anakin had no fear for his own life, but he was terrified for the lives of his Master, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, the troops uder his authority, and even R2-D2, who accompanied Anakin whenever he could. It also became increasingly difficult for him to adhere to the strict tenets of the Jedi Code, particularly when the Order itself was thrust into nebulous moral ground in waging a full-scale war. But above all else, Anakin feared for his beloved Padme. He wrote to her when ever he could, and also tried to meet with her on several occasions, but because of their duties they saw each very rarely. And the few times they did, Padme was usually in danger. 
Anakin during the Clone WarsAt the Battle of Muunilinst, Commander Anakin was in charge of coordinating the space attack against the homeworld of the InterGalactic Banking Clan, a key member of the Confederacy of Independent Systems. His exceptional starfighter piloting skills and leadership led his clone pilots to defeat the enemy forces. Anakin, however, was drawn from the battle by a sleek rogue vessel that flew apart from the enemy swarm. Despite repeated warnings from Obi-Wan not to pursue, Anakin gave chase, and followed the mysterious fanblade starfighter to the jungles of Yavin 4. Beneath the jungle canopy and amid the ruins of ancient Sith temples, Anakin dueled with Asajj Ventress, their ferocious lightsaber attacks illuminating their dark surroundings (the duel was possibly influenced by Exar Kun). Asajj got the drop on Anakin and left with a reminder of the encounter in the form of a scar near his eye. However, Anakin was able to defeat Asajj, who later escaped. But did so only by giving into his anger, and once again the young Jedi had tread dangerously close to the Dark Side of the Force.

On the rain-soaked world of Jabiim during the Battle of Jabiim that Skywalker came into his own. Obi-Wan was believed to have been killed in a Separatist attack, and Skywalker led a group of similarly "orphaned" Padawans into battle. In the midst of this battle, Anakin received an urgent message from Supreme Chancellor Palpatine. The Chancellor requested that Anakin oversee the evacuation of Jabiim personally.

While it pained Anakin to not fight alongside his comrades in the final push, he had to obey an authority as great – and a friendship as close – as Palpatine's. The evacuation of Jabiim was an ugly, controversial extraction, with the Republic abandoning the local loyalist forces to fend for themselves. Captain Gillmunn one of the leaders the group swore vengeance the Jedi Order and Skywalker and pulled his a blaster on Anakin, who reacted by using the Force to start choking Gillmunn. Such frightening use of the Force came easily to Anakin, though it was the first time he had ever used the mystical energy field in that fashion. After his heroic actions at the Battle of Praesitlyn, Anakin was endowed with the title of Jedi Knight, despite the fact that he never went through the traditional final test, "the trials" before being knighted.

During the Outer Rim Sieges, Obi-Wan and Anakin were rarely far apart, being dispatched as a team to various battlefronts, commanding the Open Circle Fleet. Later, on the icy planet of Nelvaan, Anakin experienced visions inside a cave, symbolically depicting his corruption by the Dark Side.

Adult Life

Transformation to Vader

Anakin at the end of the Clone Wars before his fall to the dark sideIt was during this time when the deadly Separatist droid leader General Grievous made an attack on Coruscant and successfully captured Supreme Chancellor Palpatine. Before the Separatist armada was able to flee Coruscant, the Battle of Coruscant erupted, with Anakin and Obi-Wan racing back from the Outer Rim Territories in an attempt to rescue the "captive" Chancellor. Arriving in the midst of the battle, they stormed the Confederacy's flagship, the Invisible Hand, in their Eta-2 Actis interceptors. The two Jedi fought their way through the ship until they reached the General's Quarters atop a tower, where Palpatine was being held hostage. His arms were strapped to the General's chair, and the two Jedi came to free him. Count Dooku, a.k.a Darth Tyranus, then entered the room, escorted by two super battle droids, to confront the heroes. Palpatine claimed that they were no match for Dooku because he was a Sith Lord. Obi-Wan casually brushed aside Palpatine's words of fear boldly proclaiming, "Sith Lords are our specialty". Unlike their first encounter with Tyranus, Obi-Wan and Anakin fought together against Dooku in a coordinated duel, until the Sith Lord used the Force to choke Kenobi while he simultaneously back-kicked Anakin and threw Obi-Wan across the room, rendering him unconscious and pinning him with a piece of a walkway dislodged by the Force. Anakin fought on with Dooku, eventually letting his emotions get the better of him as Dooku taunted, unleashing all his fear, anger and hatred, and eventually slicing off Dooku's hands, rendering the Sith Lord helpless. It was an act of vengeance from their previous duel, in which Anakin lost his right hand in that duel. Pleased with this outcome, Palpatine urged Anakin to kill Dooku. After Anakin's hesitation to give in to the Chancellor's wishes, with two lightsabers (including Dooku's own curved, red-bladed lightsaber) crossing at the Dooku's neck, he beheaded the shocked Count, killing him instantly. Anakin did not yet have the knowledge that Palpatine was also Darth Sidious, and he did not know that he was being used to betray Dooku so that Palpatine could train the young Jedi the ways of the Dark Side. Anakin immediately regretted this action, citing that it is not the way of the Jedi to kill a foe that had already surrendered. Palpatine, however, eased Anakin's conscience by claiming that such an action of violence was "only natural" in such a situation.

Anakin freed Palpatine from his bonds and escaped the Quarters, carrying an unconscious Obi-Wan on his back, ignoring Palpatine's words to leave him behind. However their escape was short lived as they were soon captured and brought before General Grievous on the bridge. R2-D2 created a distraction, which allowed Anakin and Obi-Wan to escape from their bonds and attack the general's bodyguards and droids. Unfortunately, Grievous was able to escape the Jedi as his flagship began to break apart. Anakin managed to pilot what was left of the ship to a rather hard landing on a platform in an abandoned industrial area on Coruscant.

Upon his return to Coruscant, Anakin was reunited with his wife and she informed him of her pregnancy. He was later troubled by visions of Padmé dying in childbirth. Dark times followed when Palpatine made Anakin his representative on the Jedi Council. The other Jedi reluctantly accepted Anakin's placement on the Council, but denied him the rank of Jedi Master. Further, the Jedi Council urged Anakin to keep tabs on Palpatine. This led Anakin to lose his trust in the members of that governing body. He revealed to his beloved wife that he was plagued with uncertainty.

As he continued to meet with Palpatine, the Chancellor slowly began to plant the seeds of the dark side in Anakin. Playing to his fears of Padmé dying, he told Anakin the story of a Sith Lord, Darth Plagueis, who was so powerful he could stop people from dying. Eventually Palpatine revealed his true self, and offered Anakin the chance to learn the ways of the dark side and use its power to save Padmé. Anakin realized that Palpatine was Darth Sidious and promptly reported this to Mace Windu. Windu and three other Jedi went to arrest the Chancellor. Palpatine dueled with the Jedi, slaying three of them almost immediately. Windu and Palpatine continued to fight until Windu came out on top, pointing his weapon at the throat of the cowering Sith (Although Palpatine appears to have lost, this may have been staged for the purpose of gaining sympathy from Anakin, his hopeful protégé).

Anakin arrived just in time to see Windu preparing to kill Palpatine. Palpatine then attacked Windu with Force lightning while pleading to Anakin for help. Trying desperately to block Palpatine's lightning, Windu screamed at Anakin not to listen. During this battle, Palpatine went through a physical transformation as he struggled to intensify his Dark Side powers, his face becoming hideously deformed and his eyes turning yellow. Windu prevailed and expressed a desire to kill Palpatine and end the Sith; however, Anakin confronted him, stating that Palpatine must stand trial — to execute him is not the way of the Jedi. This was out of his regret for killing Dooku before and out of his fear for losing the chance to save his wife from death. Windu ignored Anakin and prepared to kill Palpatine, but in a flash, Anakin drew his lightsaber, severing Windu's arm. Before Windu could respond, Palpatine used Force lightning to send Windu plummeting to his death. After this, Anakin questioned his actions, but Palpatine stated that he was fulfilling his destiny. He further encouraged Anakin to embrace the dark side. Anakin said he would do anything Palpatine desired; all he wanted was to save Padmé's life. Anakin then pledged himself to the Sith Order, and Sidious endowed him with a new name: Darth Vader.

Showdown on Mustafar and aftermath

Anakin, now known as Darth Vader, consumed by the dark side of the ForceIn order to increase Vader's power with the dark side, Palpatine ordered him to lead the 501st Legion of clone troopers to the Jedi Temple and kill every Jedi and Padawan inside. Vader did this without question, killing venerable Jedi and Younglings alike. Palpatine then commanded Vader to travel to the planet Mustafar, where he killed the Council of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, including the Trade Federation Viceroy, Nute Gunray, Sidious' former ally who had invaded and occupied Naboo before being defeated by Anakin during the Battle of Naboo, thirteen years before.

Padmé went to Mustafar to try to reason with Anakin, afraid for him and wanting to leave public life to live together and raise their child. Unbeknownst to her, Obi-Wan stowed away on his ship to find Anakin. Upon seeing Obi-Wan, Anakin thought that Padmé had betrayed him and brought Obi-Wan along to kill him. Overwhelmed by his anger and rage, he used the Force to choke Padmé until she lost consciousness. Obi-Wan tried to reason with his former pupil, but he was truly with the dark side of the Force. Anakin and Obi-Wan fought an intense battle throughout the mining complex and down the river of lava outside. The battle ended on the banks of the lava river, where Anakin, in his overconfidence, leaped to strike his former master, only to lose his left arm and both legs to Obi-Wan's blade.

Anakin tried to claw his way up the bank, using only his remaining prosthetic limb. As he did this, Obi-Wan and Anakin exchanged their parting words:

Obi-Wan: "You were the Chosen One! It was said that you would destroy the Sith, not join them! It was you who would bring balance to the Force, not leave it in darkness!" 
Anakin: "I hate you!" 
Obi-Wan: "You were my brother, Anakin. I loved you."

In an instant, Anakin's body caught on fire and he was nearly immolated. As this occurred, Obi-Wan bent down to retrieved Anakin's lightsaber from the ash-covered beaches of the lava river, and left. Keeping himself alive with the Force just as he and Obi-Wan had protected themselves from the lava during their fight, Anakin struggled with near-fatal third-degree burns and severe lung damage, not to mention emotional pain. Darth Sidious arrived and found Anakin barely alive beside the lava river. He took him back to Coruscant and repaired the damage to his body through intensive cybernetic enhancement at the Imperial Rehabilitation Center. He ordered the medical droids to keep him awake during the process so the pain would make him stronger. Upon his revival as a cyborg, Vader questioned his master about Padmé. Sidious told him that he had killed his wife in his anger.

Overwhelmed by his despair in the belief he had killed his wife and unborn child, Vader broke his bindings on the operating table and struggled to walk under the sheer weight of his new mechanical legs. His subsequent rage destroyed med droids and severely damaged the facility. Palpatine smiled as he realized that Vader's hatred would serve him well. The only thing that remained in Anakin's life was his service to the new Emperor. The personalities of Anakin Skywalker and Darth Vader were further separated by his extremely painful physical and emotional wounds which resulted in a great change in his appearance and character.

Though much of his potential power had now been lost, Darth Vader became the brutal second-in-command of the Galactic Empire, being granted the rank of Executor. He had the blood of many millions, including almost the entire Jedi Order, on his hands. During his 23 years of service to the Emperor, Vader carried out many horrible deeds, including torturing Leia Organa (whom he did not realize was his own daughter). He also nearly killed his son Luke Skywalker several times.

The redemption of Anakin Skywalker

At the time of Battle of Endor on 4 ABY, Luke Skywalker risked everything, including turning himself over to Imperial forces, in order to assure the victory of the Rebel Alliance and the redemption of his father. Luke was brought to Emperor Palpatine on the Death Star by Vader. The Emperor kept trying to lure Luke to the dark side by tormenting him with thoughts of the defeat of the Rebel Alliance and the death of his friends, though Luke kept on trying to restrain himself from fighting his father. Vader, sensing Luke's thoughts, finally discovered he also had a daughter, Leia Organa, Luke's twin sister. Vader then threatened to corrupt Leia, but Luke ignited his lightsaber again and attacked Vader with anger and hatred, slowly converting to the dark side. Then finally, Luke sliced off Vader's mechanical right hand, defeating the Dark Lord. Palpatine cackled with triumph, urging Luke to "fulfill your destiny, and take your father's place at my side". Vader realized that he had been betrayed, just as Count Dooku had been betrayed decades previous.

Just then Luke saw his father's right severed arm, and seeing that it was mechanical, just like his, he realized that he was becoming Vader's successor. Luke tossed his lightsaber away, refusing the Emperor's offer to join him as his new apprentice. Palpatine had finally had enough. He unleashed his powerful Force lightning on Luke. Defiant in the face of evil, Luke suffered the wrath of Palpatine, and Vader could do no more than watch as Luke Skywalker lay dying.

But Anakin Skywalker would not stand by and let his son fall. Anakin never forgot the pain Count Dooku had once inflicted upon him with the lethal power of Force lightning, and could not bear to see his son in such agony. He had been unable to save his mother, he had let Mace Windu die under his Master's power many years before, he had killed his own wife and had ensured his own downfall, but he could save his son. In a final heroic effort of self-sacrifice, rectifying his mistake by not helping Windu kill Palpatine before, Anakin struggled to his feet to rescue his son from the Emperor. He overthrew his dark Master, casting the Emperor down the Death Star's reactor shaft to his death. However, it was at the cost of his own life. Anakin was badly wounded in the process, and his breathing apparatus short-circuited, but this single act served to redeem his past actions.

Nearing death, Anakin asked Luke to help him remove his mask, so that he could see his son with his own eyes. Luke helped disconnect the mask. Underneath, Anakin was bald, with white skin from not being exposed to natural light for over twenty years. After seeing his son directly, he told Luke that he was right about him—that there was good still in him—and to tell his sister, Leia, the same. With these last words, Anakin Skywalker died and became one with the Force.

Luke escaped the crumbling Death Star in a shuttle with his father's body, and his armor was cremated in the manner of a Jedi (since Anakin's body had apparently vanished), and Luke saw what appeared to be a vision of a forgiven Anakin (whole and without the artificial body of Vader), Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Yoda smiling down upon him. With the deaths of the last two Sith Lords, Anakin had finally brought balance to the Force. His destiny fulfilled, Anakin Skywalker had passed on into the embrace of the light side of the Force.

 

Aftermath

Anakin Skywalker's specter would continue to appear throughout the years. Shortly after the Battle of Endor, Anakin appeared before Leia Organa in Salis D'aar, the capital of Bakura. There, he begged his daughter for forgiveness for his past crimes. However, Leia had only recently learned of her parentage and was unable to ignore that he had committed gross crimes including the destruction of Alderaan while serving Emperor Palpatine. After that, Anakin Skywalker never reappeared before Leia again. However, in the 8 ABY, upon discovering her grandmother's diary Leia realized that her father wasn't the evil monster that she thought he was and learned to forgive him. In 10 ABY, Leia Organa Solo named her youngest child Anakin Solo in remembrance of her father's redemption.

In 30 ABY during the Yuuzhan Vong invasion, Anakin Skywalker would speak to his grandson Jacen Solo, telling him to "Stand firm!" before Jacen eventually defeated Onimi, the true ruler of the Yuuzhan Vong.

During the events of 35 ABY, while Luke Skywalker was fixing R2-D2, the Jedi Master encountered a hologram of Anakin and Padmé Skywalker in which Anakin says to his wife he had a dream that Padmé died from childbirth.

Appearance

Anakin appeared as an average human. As an adult, he stood 6'1" inch (1.85 m) in height. His hair went from straight and blond as a child to wavy and light brown as an adult. After losing his dominant right arm at the elbow to Count Dooku, he was given a cybernetic prosthetic replacement that was later enhanced by him and covered with a black leather glove. During the Clone Wars he acquired a vertical scar near his right eye, the result of a duel with the Dark Jedi Asajj Ventress. Anakin dressed in traditional Jedi garb, though ominously, he wore darker colors than most Jedi (dark brown and black). His tunic was partially made of synthetic leather and his lightsaber bore no resemblance to his mentor's weapon, which further separated him from other Jedi.

After his redemption and return to the Light Side of the Force, when he at last fulfilled the Jedi prophecy and slew the Emperor, Anakin's dying wish was that he should see his son Luke "with his own eyes." Luke complied, and removed the fearsome mask that had caged his father's face for over twenty years. What was revealed was the ghostly pale visage of a sad and withered man in his mid-forties. His head bald and browless, Anakin's skin was pasty white from not having been exposed to sunlight for approximately two decades, his face still carrying the scars of a tragic duel. His weary eyes stared out from dark, sunken sockets at his son, and back at a life filled with sorrowful regret. Once more they shined blue, as Anakin Skywalker made peace with the Force and forever joined it.

Anakin's Possible "Father"

In light of information revealed by Palpatine to Anakin, it becomes distinctly possible that Darth Plagueis may in fact be Anakin's 'father'. It is known that Darth Plagueis had the ability to create or sustain life through manipulation of midi-chlorians, and Anakin's conception bears a notable resemblance to this concept. Though Sidious told Anakin he never learned the secret from his master, it is unknown whether Anakin was a key in rediscovering the secret or merely an extremely powerful pawn. It is also very possible that Palpatine was just lying, as he usually does, deceiving Anakin on his path to the Dark Side of the Force.

Another possibility is that Sidious himself could have been Anakin's "father" if he had learned the power to influence midi-chlorians from his master.

It is impossible to know for certain what the truth is, yet these remain as two distinct possibilities.

 

Behind the scenes

In Sanskrit, the name "Anakin" means "warrior." Creator George Lucas took the name from his friend and fellow film director, Ken Annakin.

Depending on which version was seen (VHS or DVD, respectively), the appearance of Anakin's redeemed Force ghost was either that of a robust, middle-aged man with graying brown hair and a kindly face, or that of the younger Anakin in his twenties just before his fall from grace to the Dark Side, though now he was dressed in the garb of a Jedi Master, although Anakin never actually reached that rank in life.

Hayden was not the first actor in Star Wars to fight with a lightsaber in each hand. During the battle in the Geonosian's arena, one unknown Jedi can be seen fighting battle droids with a saber in each hand.

Portrayal

Anakin was played in the films by Jake Lloyd as a child, Hayden Christensen as a young adult, and Sebastian Shaw as a dying, elderly (and redeemed) person. Christensen himself portrayed Vader in the black armored suit in Episode III, while David Prowse did so in IV, V, and VI, except for the fight scenes in V and VI, in which swordsman Bob Anderson wore the suit. Anakin/Vader's voice in the Original Trilogy and Revenge of the Sith was performed by James Earl Jones and by David Birney in the final episode of the Return of the Jedi radio drama. In the Clone Wars cartoon, he was voiced by Jerome Beidler as a child and Mat Lucas as an adult.

In Return of the Jedi, the unmasked Vader and the spirit of the forgiven Anakin were played by actor Sebastian Shaw. In the release of the DVDs, however, Hayden Christensen had replaced the head of Sebastian Shaw when appearing as the Jedi spirit.