Hayden makes an entry into the studio, looking very smart in a black suit and nodding at the camera as he comes out of the
back door).
(Audience scream heads off)
(Hayden and Rove shakes hands and hug)
(Audience still are screaming heads off, Rove then goes onto doing a hilarious imitation of something that is meant to be evil.
Rather like Captain hook to me. Hayden looks at him and laughs.)
Rove: Wonderful to have you here
Hayden: Wonderful to be here
Rove: Does it feel in some respects like coming home when you come back to Australia?
Hayden: Very much so. I mean I spent about a year here all tally, we did both of our Star Wars films in Fox Studios and it has
become a bit of a home away from home. So I was very excited to come on the show because I’ve watched it several times,
so here we are. It’s good stuff!
Rove: So wonderful to have you here.
(Audience claps)
Rove: Especially if you’ve watched the show and are still willing to come on. Brilliant.
Hayden: *laughs*
Rove: So, what did you do when you first go back to Sydney? Did you go boogie boarding?
Hayden: I didn’t boogie board. I took a little wander around Bondi which was the old stomping grounds for myself so I,
yeah, saw my old friends, wandered into couple of the old shops I used to frequent it was just nice being back, it’s such a
great place, you guys really have it made here, it’s good.
Rove: There was a big preview I suppose of the new trailer for episode three! It’s very exciting; the first time you saw it,
what was your reaction?
Hayden: I flipped. I thought it was pretty cool. It’s action packed, it’s everything that I think people have been waiting for.
It’s a good one.
Rove: And what can you tell us…
Hayden: Very little.
Rove:…about what to expect from Revenge of the Sith, or as they say it in New-Zealand “Revenge of the Sith”?
(Audience and Hayden laugh)
Hayden: It’s er, *mumbles Revenge of the Sith* going to be a much darker film. It’s the story of Anakin become dark, it’s,
you know a republic becoming an empire, all very epic stuff, and all driven by action packed sequences. From what I have
seen, it’s really going to be a phenomenal film.
Rove: As I’ve said, the trailer, there was a preview of it last night in Sydney and it will be in cinemas on Thursday, but we
actually have a very exciting sneak peak here it is episode three, Revenge of the Sith, have a quick look.
(Clips of Trailer are shown)
(Audience claps)
Rove: Very cool. Now I have to ask, at the risk of disappointing anyone, including myself, is that actually you in the suit because
James Earl Jones did the voice for the original trilogy there was another actor David Prowse in the suit, did you get to don the
black helmet?
Hayden: I did. I did. They were kind enough to allow me the privilege. From the time I got offered the part of Anakin I was
always kind of hinting at the fact that I would love to be in the suit if that was ever going to be a possibility. And George was
nice enough to allow me to do so. It was you know, a thrill, I can’t really describe the sensation of being enclothed in Darth
Vader. It was orgasmic to say the least.
(Audience laughs)
Rove: And as I said a lot of Star Wars nerds would probably know how you’re feeling. (Audience laughs)
Were you a huge fan of the film beforehand?
Hayden: I was a huge fan. I mean, I wasn’t really born when the original came out, but still a fan in the womb. No,
I have an older brother who was a huge fan so I was very familiar with the films and we had all the toys around the house
growing up but no, you can’t really dream that big to think that big to think that one day you’ll get to play Darth Vader in George
Lucas’ star wars, so it was phenomenal.
Rove: So, you’re a tall guy, and I don’t diss at it because everyone is taller than me. But I believe you still had to have a bit of
height when you were inside the Darth Suit. Is that correct?
Hayden: I did, I did. I mean the whole thing was a little awkward. You’ve got about 40 pounds on each shoulder and then
put the shoe lifts and that makes a further height difference, it’s like walking around in high heeled shoes in this Darth Suit that
you could barely see anything out of so I was very paranoid that I would walk and trip or something and wreck the whole thing
but I managed to get through it all right so it was okay.
Rove: And what was your audition process like? First time walking in to meet someone like George Lucas?
Was it a bit nerve wracking?
Hayden: It was very nerve wracking. It was a daunting process. First time I met him, I flew to the Skywalker Ranch out in San
Francisco and that in itself as a privilege and honor and I was content with that. I met with him a couple of times after and
had to audition with Natalie and we read the lines and I guess there was some chemistry there that George noticed and they
offered me the part.
Rove: I believe you were worried at first that you didn’t get the role?
Hayden: As I said before, you can’t ever think that you…
Rove: … No, I hear he gave you something at the end that had you thinking that you didn’t get the role?
Hayden: Oh, he gave be a mug and a hat and I thought that was like, a consolation prize for coming.
(Audience laugh) And I was happy with that. I was like “I got a hat and a mug from George Lucas!” but no, I got a
phone call a few days afterwards saying that they wanted me to do it, so here we are now.
Rove: It’s very exciting and as I said it opens around the world on May 19, it’s Star wars Episode 3 , Revenge of the Sith,
please thank Hayden Christensen everybody!