when was hayden christensen added to return of the jedi
Return of the Jedi With the release of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, which depicts how and why Anakin Skywalker turned to the dark side of the Force, Lucas once again altered Return of the Jedi to bolster the relationship between the original trilogy and the prequel trilogy. The original and 1997 Special Edition versions of Return of the Jedi featured British theatre actor Sebastian Shaw playing both the dying Anakin Skywalker and his ghost. In the 2004 DVD, Shaw's portrayal of Anakin's ghost is replaced by Hayden Christensen, who portrayed Anakin in Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. All three films in the original unaltered Star Wars trilogy were later released, individually, on DVD on September 12, 2006. These versions were originally slated to only be available until December 31, 2006, although they remained in print until May 2011 and were packaged with the 2004 versions again in a new box set on November 4, 2008.[38] Although the 2004 versions in these sets each feature an audio commentary, no other extra special features were included to commemorate the original cuts. The runtime of the 1997 Special Edition of the film and all subsequent releases is approximately five minutes longer than the original theatrical version.
Sebastian Shaw (actor) In 1982, Shaw was chosen for the small but crucial role of unmasked and dying Anakin Skywalker in Return of the Jedi, the third and final film in the original Star Wars trilogy. Although David Prowse played the costumed scenes and James Earl Jones voiced Darth Vader, just as they had in the first two films, Shaw was cast in a single scene with Mark Hamill, during the moment aboard Death Star II when Luke Skywalker unmasks his dying father. Since the scene was unquestionably the emotional climax of the film, the casting crew sought an experienced actor for the role.[7]