Darth Vader

Darth Vader is a character in the Star Wars franchise. He is the primary antagonist of the original film trilogy and, as Anakin Skywalker, is the protagonist of the prequel trilogy. Originally a slave on the planet Tatooine, he becomes a powerful Jedi. He is lured to the dark side of the Force by Chancellor Palpatine, and becomes the Sith Lord Darth Vader. After being severely wounded in a lightsaber battle, he is transformed into a cyborg. He is the husband of Padmé Amidala and the biological father of Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa Solo.

David Prowse physically portrayed Vader in the original trilogy, while James Earl Jones provided his voice in all of the films and some television series. Sebastian Shaw portrayed the unmasked Anakin in Return of the Jedi, as well as the character's spirit in the original release of that film. Jake Lloyd played young Anakin in The Phantom Menace (1999), while Hayden Christensen portrayed him as a young adult in Attack of the Clones (2002) and Revenge of the Sith (2005). Christensen also played Anakin in post-2004 releases of Return of the Jedi and in the series Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022) and Ahsoka (2023). In the standalone film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), Vader is portrayed by Spencer Wilding and Daniel Naprous. Vader has also appeared in books, comics, and video games. He has become an iconic villain of cinema.