How Old Anakin Is In Each Star Wars Movie (Including As Darth Vader)

Anakin Skywalker lived an adventurous life in his early years and then became more menacing in his middle age, ultimately dying in his mid-40s.

Anakin Skywalker's age has been a contentious topic when discussing the Star Wars prequels, particularly how old he was in the first two films. First appearing in George Lucas' original Star Wars movie as Darth Vader, Anakin is one of the main staples in the franchise. While his son took center stage in the original trilogy, his fall to the dark side of the Force and later redemption came to define the Skywalker saga. That's why he's appeared in so many movies, TV shows, games, and comics over the years.

Chronologically, Anakin first appeared in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace and last appeared on-screen in Return of the Jedi, though his voice can be heard as both Anakin and Vader in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Throughout all that time, Anakin lived a lot - fighting in the Clone Wars, training his own apprentice, becoming the youngest member ever to serve on the Jedi Council (even though he wasn't a Jedi Master), and co-ruling the galaxy as a Sith Lord. And he did all of that by his mid-40s.

Anakin Skywalker was born in 41 BBY, which makes him 9 years old in The Phantom Menace (32 BBY) when he meets Padme, who was 14 years old. Considering they later marry each other and have children together, many fans were concerned about their age gap. However, Anakin was 19 years old when they developed a romantic relationship in Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (22 BBY). He later turned to the dark side and became Darth Sidious' apprentice when he was 22 years old in Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (19 BBY).

Darth Vader/Anakin Skywalker appears next in the Clone Wars series finale and then later in Star Wars Rebels, but his next movie appearance wasn't until Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (0 BBY), in which he was 41 years old. Given that A New Hope begins immediately after Rogue One ends, Darth Vader was also 41 years old in that movie. But he's a tad bit older - 44 years old, to be exact - when The Empire Strikes Back begins in 3 ABY. And then Vader ultimately dies at the age of 45 in Return of the Jedi, which takes place one year later in 4 ABY.

If Anakin somehow survived the Imperial Era and lived through the age of the New Republic, he would've been 76 years old in The Rise of Skywalker. Although he died relatively young, Anakin certainly lived an adventurous and rather disrupting life. Comparatively, Obi-Wan Kenobi died at 57 years old in A New Hope - around the same age as Darth Maul, too. It seems many Jedi and Sith tend to die in their 40s and 50s, with some obvious exceptions like Yoda and Palpatine.

Next: All Star Wars Movies Ranked

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