Few movie villains are as imposing or as infamous as the former Anakin Skywalker, Darth Vader.George Lucas’Star Warsicon has been so influential to film that AFI, the American Film Institute, once named himthe third greatest movie villainever in their “AFI’s 100 Years… 100 Heroes & Villains” list. Not to brag, butCollider put him at number one, thank you very much. Vader works on so many different levels. He’s got the look for one. Wearing all black isn’t only slimming,it alsomakes you look like a badass.
With that helmet and cape,Darth Vader felt like an indestrucible force. Imagine the Terminator, but with a personality. Since we couldn’t see his face,James Earl Jones' phenomenal voicemade Vader’s foes, along with the audience, fear him just through his words. The last thing he had going for him was his sheer size. The original actor behind the mask,David Prowse, was a very tall man.Hayden Christensen, who later played Vader inStar Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sithand the Disney+ seriesObi-Wan Kenobi, might have had the good looks, buthe didn’t have the size of Prowse.So, just how tall is Darth Vader?
Luke Skywalker joins forces with a Jedi Knight, a cocky pilot, a Wookiee and two droids to save the galaxy from the Empire’s world-destroying battle station, while also attempting to rescue Princess Leia from the mysterious Darth Vader.
David Prowse Played Darth Vader in the Original Star Wars Trilogy
David Prowse didn’t have the perfect voice for Darth Vader. He did the voice during shoots, and God bless him, he tried, buthis thick British accent made Vader more silly than frightening, as if the character was something out of aMonty Pythonskit. That would’ve been an interesting take. Still, he had the size. Prowse,who passed away in 2020, was cast as Vader when he was in his early 40s forStar Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope. Prowse stood at 6'6" and theofficialStar Warswebsite has Darth Vader listed at 2.03 meters. For anyone unfamiliar with the metric system,Darth Vader was 6'6". Throw in the boots and the massive helmet he wore, andyou’re looking at Vader approaching 7-feet-tall.
That size was needed.It drew the viewer’s gaze to him in every scene and made him look more menacing, especially when the hero,Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker, was just 5'9".The only character who could stand toe-to-toe with Vader was Chewbacca. That role eventually went to the even tallerPeter Mayhew, who stood 7'3", and that’s not even including the massive furry head he had to lug around on his own every day. Prowse actually auditioned to play Chewbacca too, but as he toldNPRin 2008, “Well, if you think back on all the movies that you’ve ever seen where there are goodies and baddies…you always remember the baddie.” While that’s true, no one ever forgot Chewbacca either.
What Happened to George Lucas’ Live-Action Star Wars Series?
Before the Disney times, before the Empire.
Two Actors Played Darth Vader in ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’
David Prowse played Darth Vader inA New Hope, and returned to play him twice more, in 1980’sStar Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Backand 1983’sStar Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi. Though Darth Vader was seen briefly in another film and later a TV series (more on those in a minute), the last time we saw Vader on the big screen wasthe prequel toA New Hope,Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
Prowse was long retired and not available to play him, so for his scenes, he was played by two men.Spencer Wilding, a Welsh actor and kickboxer who once played a werewolf inHarry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, was under the black mask for some scenes. He stands at 6'7". For other scenes, it wasDaniel Naprousas Vader, with this actor coming in at 6'5".Split the difference and, boom, Darth Vader is still 6'6".That’s just basic math.
Hayden Christensen Donned the Darth Vader Suit Twice
BeforeRogue One, George Lucas brought theStar Warsfranchise back, starting in 1999, with a prequel trilogy most people hated at the time, but which is now looked upon with nostalgic joy.
The focus of these new films was still Darth Vader, but not the broken man in a mask he became, and rather the boy and young man named Anakin Skywalker he used to be. ForStar Wars: Episode II - Attack of the ClonesandStar Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith,Hayden Christensen played the Skywalker who would become Darth Vader. Christensen gets a lot of flack for his pretty-boy good looks and perceived wooden acting skills, buthe is an underrated, solid actor. There is just one issue.Hayden Christensen is no David Prowse in the height department.On a good day, he stands just 6'1". For the original movie trilogy, that can be worked around. After all, Christensen doesn’t put on the Darth Vader suit until the last seconds of the trilogy, and he doesn’t interact with other characters.
Christensen was not brought back forRogue One, but by 2022,nostalgia deemed that fans now liked him after all, and he returned forObi-Wan KenobialongsideEwan McGregoras the titular character. Here, however, Christensen would be in the Vader costume much, much more. He had to interact with other characters and fight in the suit. Sure, the boots and helmet could make him look taller than he was, but no matter what he did,he couldn’t be as tall as Prowse.Christensen spoke about this on theD23 podcast, saying, “I do have some help because of the nature of the height difference. I’m 6’1”, I’m not a small guy, but Vader in the original, David Prowse, was 6’6” or something. So I put on as much weight as I could; I couldn’t grow myself though, so I did need some help though with a lot of the perspective shots where you can really see the height of Vader."
Some people want to seem taller than they are — Who knew weight gain was the way to it! He’s still smaller than Chewbacca, butno matter who was under the mask, Darth Vader is definitively 6'6".
