May 17, 2005 | Celeb Watch

How can evil be this cute?

"Revenge of the Sith," the (supposedly) final chapter in the "Star Wars" saga, opens this Thursday - and we just can't wait to see  Hayden Christensen in the role of Anakin Skywalker.

Canadian-born Hayden, 24, has been acting since he was seven years old in theater, television and - aside from his "Star Wars" work - has done numerous other films including "Life as a House," "The Virgin Suicides" and "In the Mouth of Madness."

"Revenge of the Sith" follows Anakin's descent into evil, which leads him to a near-fatal accident and rebirth into the part-man, part-machine Darth Vader, whose black mask and cape personify the "dark side" of the Force.

Thankfully, the Darth outfit doesn't come into play until the final part of the movie - so we get to look at Hayden's face for almost the entire film.  With the help of cat's eye contact lenses, a dark hood and a glowering expression, the once sweet and innocent Anakin is transformed into a brooding, megalomaniac - sexy still, but in a ruthless, power-hungry way.

•  Hayden Christensen: the man who would be Darth [Seattle Times]
• Star Wars: the Official site [StarWars.com]