Hayden Christensen Biography

Hayden Christensen Hayden Christensen is a film and television actor best known for playing the young Anakin Skywalker in George Lucas' latter two Star Wars prequels.Hayden Christensen was born on April the 19, 1981, in Vancouver in the Canadian province of British Columbia. His parents run their own business, working in the communications industry. He has a brother, Tove Christensen, who is now an actor and producer, and two sisters, Hesja Christensen and Kaylen Christensen. Shortly after his birth the family moved to Thornhill on the outskirts of Toronto. He loved hockey and tennis, which he played competitively, even getting to be a ball boy in the Canadian Open Tennis Championship where his enthusiasm inadvertently annoyed John MacEnroe. His sister Hesja, meanwhile, became junior world trampoline champion, and it was when she was meeting agents for possible commercial work that he, tagging along, was spotted and advised to find an agent of his own.Christensen's first acting opportunity came in the TV show Family Passions, when he was just thirteen. Over the next few years he secured minor roles in several films, including John Carpenter's In the Mouth of Madness and Bruce Pittman's adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut story Harrison Bergeron. After graduating from Unionville High School he joined Toronto's Arts York program to receive formal training in drama, despite the objections of his father. The course paid off, and upon leaving he won a part in Sophia Coppola's adaptation of the cult Jeffrey Eugenides novel The Virgin Suicides, which also starred Kathleen Turner, Danny DeVito, and Kirsten Dunst.Further television work followed, with a major role in the FOX series Higher Ground, helping Christensen gain public recognition. His next film, Life as a House, with Kevin Kline and Kristin Scott Thomas was less successful, but won him critical acclaim.Then came the biggest audition of his life. Competing with established stars like Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonathan Jackson, Christensen won the role of Anakin Skywalker in George Lucas' second Star Wars prequel Attack of the Clones, because of his sheer enthusiasm (like co-star Ewan McGregor, he spontaneously made light saber noises when passed a prop to try), his chemistry with co-star Natalie Portman (the two were rumored to be having an affair, but both denied it), and the fact he didn't try to make his character too likeable. Despite a poor overall reception with critics and fans, the movie made Christensen a megastar, and he solidified his reputation by going on to appear in Revenge of the Sith. Suddenly he found himself in massive demand.Christensen's response to this sudden fame was typical; shunning the big offers, he took advantage of the opportunity to pick and choose among the more unusual films that appealed to him, including the acclaimed Shattered Glass, with Peter Sarsgaard and Chlo Sevigny. He will shortly appear as a thinly disguised Bob Dylan in George Hickenlooper's Factory Girl.Christensen has also found himself under intense pressure from the tabloid press, but has carefully defended his right to keep his private life private, refusing to comment on speculation about his supposed romantic involvement with stars such as Beyonce Knowles, Eva Longoria, Jewel Staite, and Trevor Blumas. He splits his time between his homes in Totonto and Los Angeles and likes to relax by playing jazz and the blues.

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