Credit: Inside the MagicJake Lloyd has long been a controversial figure in the Star Wars fandom, ever since his performance as a nine-year-old Anakin Skywalker in Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999) polarized audiences. But, according to his mother, his ongoing mental health issues are not connected to the extreme criticism he received as a child actor.
It is fair to say that Episode I was one of the most highly anticipated pop culture events in years when it hit theaters, with fans famously sleeping outside of cinemas for days and the eyes of the world on actors taking on roles like Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor). Although the movie was a huge commercial success and, in retrospect, a huge landmark in CGI filmmaking, its critical reputation quickly diminished.
Related: Daisy Ridley Says She Didn’t Deserve To Be in ‘Star Wars’
Both Jake Lloyd and fellow actor Ahmed Best, who portrayed Jar Jar Binks, received aggressively harsh criticism from fans of the franchise. While Ahmed Best has recently returned to Star Wars in an episode of The Mandalorian and has hinted at some future role, Lloyd retired from acting and has apparently suffered a number of personal setbacks, including a 2015 arrest in South Carolina (under the name Jake Broadbent) for reckless driving, driving without a license, and resisting arrest.
Jake Lloyd’s mother, Lisa Lloyd, has revealed (via Scripps) that the former Anakin Skywalker actor suffers from paranoid schizophrenia and that the heavy criticism he received because of his Star Wars role was not the trigger. According to Lisa Lloyd, his biological father’s family has a history of the disorder and that, “It would have happened anyway…I believe that it was genetic. And his psychiatrist also agrees that Jake was going to become schizophrenic.”
Lisa Lloyd also said that she wanted to push back on the idea that the actor had been enormously affected by the reception of Episode I, saying that “I protected him from the backlash. He was just riding his bike outside, playing with his friends. He didn’t know. He didn’t care. Everybody makes such a big deal about that. And it’s rather annoying to me because Jake was a little kid when that came out, and he didn’t really feel all that stuff because I didn’t let him online.”
Related: Mace Windu Returns to ‘Star Wars’ in Direct Sequel to ‘The Phantom Menace’
According to his mother, Jake Lloyd is still a fan of the Star Wars franchise and is currently watching the Disney+ series Ahsoka. She says, “He loves all the new Star Wars stuff… People think Jake hates Star Wars. He loves it.”
Jake Lloyd only appeared as Anakin in one prequel film, being replaced by Hayden Christensen as the future Darth Vader in Attack of the Clones (2002) and Revenge of the Sith (2005). Christensen has recently reprised the role in both Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka, but there is no indication that Lloyd may ever return. Still, we hope for the best for Mr. Lloyd.
What did you think of Jake Lloyd in Episode I? Tell us in the comments below!