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HEllo everyone! Ok, I saw Spiderman 2 on wednesday(fabolous movie) and the thing that i kept thinking was...WHY IN THE WORLD DID GL CHOOSE HAYDEN OVER JAMES FRANCO!?!?!?!?!?!?!? For anyone who may not know, from what i have read, the last few contestants for Anakin were Hayden, James, and Leonardo Dicaprio. After watching the angry, drunken, revenge driven character of Harry Osborne played by Franco, i am CONVINCED he would have been a better choice. I love Hayden, don't get me wrong, but go see S2 and you may agree with me. He's much more commanding on screen, he's bigger, he's not as much of a pretty boy as Hayden, and to me he pulled off the angry, frustrated, revenge driven young man character, PERFECTLY. I think the only way my mind will be changed is to see Hayden's performance in Ep III. Who knows,maybe i'm a complete moron and he'll blow me away next May. GL may know something i don't. Any opinions?

One

because he was looking for the very thing he saw in HC, who IMHO IS anakin and I'm good with that

maybe he resembles more the little anaking from the phantom menace.


but whoever he chose, that be thankful he didn't choose dicaprio

um...........o...k

oh no doubt........that would have been a disaster

Exactly. He probably saw more physical features that somewhat resembled Jake lloyd. Franco is probably a little too skinny, and his face wasn't what george was looking for. That would be my guess. Or maybe he wanted a gazillion dollars. Who knows?

one of the webdocs from EP2 entitled "Trying to do my Thing" which can be viewed at the official site answers this question from both the Lucas and the casting directors lips.

Follow the link......>http://www.starwars.com/episode-ii/video/making/making4.html

yeah.....when he woul've had to jump from obi-wan's speeder.


"i.m on top of the wooooooooooooorrrrld!"
*jump*

It dont know if anyone could have done any better in Ep 2... it was just a horrible job to havve to do. The 40-50 scenes with him and Padme were torture.. she didnt do any better than him but the direction they received must have been non-existant.
Im hoping his Ep 3 role will give him more to do.
And the way Anakin looks for Ep 3 i cant see anyone else being him.

anakin2vader....i agree, but i thought hayden looked the part in 2. he will have to put in work in 3. i hope he can impress me. Franco really did in S2. Thanks for the link to the webdoc.

no problem.....its in the freebie section so I could post it here!

Franco did a great job of portraying the darker side of himself in Spidey 2, I admit that was interesting to watch, though Hayden I believe was an acceptable choice. I've enjoyed his performance so far.

SMX

however..maybe a more capable actor would have been suited...especially for those love scenes, dialogues..etc.

Well remember, the dialogue Lucas gave them doesn't do them any glory either, so he's partly to blamb. But really, I didn't have a problem with the dialogue at all, just saying it could have been a bit better.

SMX

In the webdoc posted here GL said he wanted a James Dean type actor or the role. Franco won an Emmy for his portayal of James Dean!!!!!Sooooooooooooo confused.

but I think Franco couldnt have pulled off the emtional tantrums like Hayden did in ATOC much as many of you hated them, I thought they conveyed his inexperiece etc beautifully.

Tantrums may have been similiar but i just think he is darker than Hayden and would have been more convincing, but Hayden may have my foot in my mouth by next May

The tantrums were dumb...I hated seeing the biggest badass in the Star Wars galaxy throwing a hissy fit.

the tantrums were essential to the character development of Anakin, surely you must see that. It's those very things that make him susceptible to the dark side.

Exactly. It shows that his character is becoming rebellious, and unable to accept the way certain things have to be, therefore he doesn't like it which is one of the aspects that leads him to the dark side.

SMX

I don't know all that I do know george must have saw something in hayden that he liked for now may force be with you

I agree, he must have, and have no problem with Hayden either.

SMX

Alright. Firstly, let me express how much I like James Franco as an actor. He is my favourite person in the Spiderman Universe and I adored him in the first movie and look forward to seeing him in S2. I also saw him in a James Dean mini-movie and fell in love with him; he is one of my favourite actors. From what I have seen of S2 I will thoroughly enjoy Franco in this next installment and simply cannot wait to see his new, more sinister performance.

As you may or may not know I am a GREAT advocate of Hayden Christensen's portrayal of Anakin Skywalker. I found his performance to be precisely what it needed to be; he was chilling and filled with rage as the darker side of Anakin but also deep and tragic as Anakin's more vulnerable side. For me, he WAS Anakin. He also looked the part, as others have mentioned. I will not deny that I find him VERY attractive but that is not what convinced me of the perfect casting. I also find Franco easy on the eye but I jsut can't 'see' him as Anakin, regardless of his talent for ...pulling off the angry, frustrated, revenge driven young man character... .

Pretty much; I think Franco is a great actor but not my choice for Anakin. Sorry for the rambling...

LYN.......great post, and i pretty much agree with u on it. My point is that before seeing S2 i was cool with Hayden's portayal (albeit "non existent directing" and painful dialogue), but after seeing S2, now i'm not so sure that James wouldn't have been better, though its a TAD too late for that. Just wait, u may feel different when you see S2.........and just to reiterate(hope i spelled that right), I may being eating my words come May 2005, pending a wonderful performance by Hayden! haha! Thanks for all the opinions guys

One

agreed in the most part.
They are both fine young actors,
but i think one of the main reasons he chose Hayden was that he'd not had a major defining role previously, like Franco.
In many people eyes, Franco will always be 'That harry from spiderman' as will hayden be 'Darth vader from star wars' after episode three. But from GL's point of view, thats fine, it doesnt bother him if people think of Hayden in that way after star wars, even though it might hinder Haydens career.
But in all, i'd still have to say that i like Haydens portrayal of anakin. although who knows!? guess we'll never find out unless Franco one day dons those famous robes

You spelled it right.

corn

"Guess we'll never find out unless Franco one day dons those famous robes"

Something like that pic?

http://www.mainboard.dk/upload/files/jamesfranco_Anakin.jpg

Comparison Franco vs Hayden:
http://www.mainboard.dk/upload/files/jamesfrancoAnakin.jpg
http://www.mainboard.dk/upload/files/HaydenAnakin.jpg

beta
tongue_smilie

i must admit, Franco does look abit more menacing than hayden

aah but he wasnt supposed to be menacing in ATOC........guys give the boy a chance lets wait and see what he brings to EP3

Oh dont get me wrong JP, i was knocking Haydens performance, not in the slightest, i suppose its just one of those 'what ifs'
judging by the episode 3 pics ive seen so far he looks pretty cool

definitely he's got that look to him that makes it seem like he's always glaring

I understand where you're coming from, absolutely. You've made me even MORE excited about seeing S2..!!

I think Hayden will impress all in EpIII.

I can't see those pics by the way, link isn't working...

I think George Lucas picked Hayden Christensen for one reason (yeah, sorry IF I mispelled his last name): because he's Canadian and he wanted Star Wars to be a farce....

oh ICK bored

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Ick???
You know it's the truth!

not on my side of the galaxy.....I loved A New Hope in 77 and have loved each and every one of them since....and you know what? I wouldnt change a single thing. Not even Jar Jar altho I cant stand him. You have to understand I saw this movie when it was brand new. The effects were way ahead of everybody else. And when you get the on the ground floor, the ride the rest of the way is just peachy! Alot of you have been tainted (so to speak) by the effects that were in existence when you finally got to see ANH etc for the first time. You were expecting this big extravaganza and felt let down....but you know what? In 1977 ANH WAS a big extravaganza and for me each and every movie continues to and will be. Why? Because it ENTERTAINS ME. I'm not a film cirtic and I dont wanna be, I just wanna have fun when I go to the movies! And this whole saga provides that. The battles, the flying in space, the good guys vs the bad guys. Makes me feel like a kid again! Even in the way I think Hayden is fine, altho he's almost young enough to be my son!

He is ok.....but there are better actors....plus he's a Canadian, eh!
All our actors suck, unless they are comedians!

Well here is up again!

James Franco -EP2
http://www.mainboard.dk/upload/files/jamesfrancoAnakin.jpg

Hayden Christensen-EP2
http://www.mainboard.dk/upload/files/HaydenAnakin.jpg

will see if hayden is good in ep3 I think he has done a good job playing anakin .

EPISODE3: Anakin looking totally evil

Hayden:

http://theforce.net//episode3/newspics/ep3_ah3.jpg

James:

http://www.mainboard.dk/upload/files/James_AnakinEvil.jpg




I believe....Hayden is the chosen....

Good on ya JP..!!

By the way, thanx for the pic Dark_PadawanZ; I saw it this time..!!

http://www.mainboard.dk/upload/files/James_AnakinEvil.jpg

OK http://theforce.net//episode3/newspics/ep3_ah3.jpg

And given the above 2 pics, to me, it looks like Hayden was the right choice. I mean, everyone's talking about how dark Franco would have been when we haven't even seen Episode 3 yet. Like it was said earlier, give him a chance, I think from what I've seen, that Hayden will do a good job in Episode 3, the movie where he's "Supposed" to act dark.

SMX

that jemes dude looks more like luke

hayden canot act ,in epii he act a little bit gayisch,

I think Lucas is partly to blamb for Hayden's performance, there wasn't much he could do with the dialogue "Obi-Wan would very grumpy" you know, those childish lines and stuff, but hopefully Episode 3 will make up for that.

SMX

in one of the wepdocks of ep III this producer guy is talking about how anakin kills obi-wan very powerful. thats not right is it ???? i mean
anakin is gonna be cut in two ,and his other arm,and he Will fall into lava,
"fall into lava" you Will even die if you stand next to it

Theory is that his deep hatred is what keeps him alive after his fall. At least that's what I've been reading.

SMX

this lava ending is so old
starwars

wait i get it > he is the chosen one right he canot die until
he wil kil the dark master (ep-6)

ye that was rick mcallum if i remember. he meant to see this strong relationship between master and apprentice deteriorate to the point where they have a fnial showdown in EP3. anakin survives ofcourse and later slays OB1 in EpIV New Hope. didnt actually kill him but he would have if OB1 didnt dissappear.

and your right. even standing close to lava or motlen material would burn the f**k outta u.

when ever i think of anakins fall into this motlen pit i keep thinking of the T1000 in Terminator 2 and how he died.

Well ajrocksteady, I just saw S2 tonight so I can comment on Franco's performance.
I thought he was brilliant..!! You're exactly right; he pulled that 'angry, dark' character off very well. Just the confusion, the frustration he took out on Peter and the sorrow he felt. When he was sitting at that bar I just wanted to run up and hug him, I felt so sorry for him. And I'm in love with him again...
Still though, I don't think he would have pulled of Anakin, at least not the way Hayden has and will. I definitley understand what motivated you to think that though, absolutely.

^ I agree. He's brilliant in Spider-Man, but that and Star Wars are completely seperate movies and characters. Franco fits in well with Spider-Man, that's great, but that doesn't mean he'd be suited for StarWars. I know we'll see more out of Hayden in Episode 3, and hopefully it will change alot of opinions. Not that I'm against anyone's opinion, I just believe more of us may like Hayden in Episode 3.

SMX

Ok I finally got to see Spiderman 2. Very cool flick. I thought Franco was good, but I'm sticking with my original thought. Hayden is the only Anakin for me. I preferred him immature the way he was. I didnt want to see him that intense yet. He was just a young man, with so many conflicting emotions and feelings. Harry in Spiderman had a single mindedness about him. He wanted Spiderman even if it cost him his best friend. Anakin however doesnt know what the hell he wants outside of Padme. And thats why he's such a fascinating character to me. All that conflict..........

oke oke tel me spiderman2 has not yet bin relaesed in my country
=wat hepend when franco ript the mask of spidey
(you know in the trailer)??????

this guy is from pearl harbor right
http://upx.primenova.com/sw1/sw2-fake.jpg

ok thats just SO wrong....Hartlett sux

btw do you have that with anakin in it like it should be?

I agree SMX. I think Hayden is going to blow us away...

That's what I love about Hayden's portrayal. His eyes have so much expression in them...you can feel the conflict. That's also why I liked James in S2; so much depth. Hayden for Anakin all the way..!!

Too right JP...Hartnett looks ridiculous there..!! BAH!!

LoL, I wanted to go up to him and give him a big hug too. James Franco's so gorgeous, probably too gorgeous for anakin hehe.

He's VERY gorgeous, I agree....just not as gorge as Hayden...