It’s fair to say that no other character in the entirety of Star Wars‘ 40-year-plus history has had more faces than Anakin Skywalker. From the sheepish-yet-ambitious boy Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon first met on Tatooine (played by Jake Lloyd) to the liberated Force Ghost originally portrayed by Sebastian Shaw—and controversially replaced later with Hayden Christensen—in Return of the Jedi, all have put their own stamp on the character since its inception.
Were Luke and Leia’s corruptible father ever to make an appearance in live-action ever again, though, who would take on the task? Of the three mentioned above, only Christensen would be a possibility. Though failing that, Disney could well be convinced to give Leonardo DiCaprio a call.
As part of its Deepfake Theater series, Collider Extras replaces the likeness of Lloyd, Christensen and Shaw in several scenes across the entire saga with DiCaprio, and the end result is fantastic.
Is it unsettling to see The Wolf of Wall Street and Titanic star’s face on a child? Normally, we’d say yes, but in this case, the pairing somehow fits. The same goes for George Lucas’ Prequel Trilogy, though the facade finally begins to waver when the actor’s face is digitally grafted to Shaw’s. The sequence in question, where Luke removes Darth Vader’s helmet so father can look upon son with “his own eyes,” visibly shows where real skin and CGI converge. But it’s nonetheless a fantastic effort.
Eager to jump down the rabbit hole and explore more Star Wars deepfakes? Check out Guardians of the Galaxy star Chris Pratt’s turn as OT-era Han Solo by heading through here.
