Child actor who nearly played Anakin Skywalker sends heartwarming message to Jake Lloyd

The actor who very nearly played the young Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace has shared a sweet message to Jake Lloyd.

Devon Michael, 36, is a former child star starring in a slew of commercials as well as a bunch of movies including Little Boy Blue, Mr and Mrs Smith and Logan’s War - but despite getting his face on the big and small screen fairly regularly, Michael failed to land himself any juicy roles.

But all that looked as though it could have been set to change when - at just nine years old - Michael impressed casting directors working on Star Wars: The Phantom and ended up making it all the way from 3,000 wannabe stars to the final three.

In an interview with The New York Times about his near-brush with mega stardom, he said: “It was narrowed down from 3,000 boys to three and the final call was to do a screen test, at George Lucas’ ranch, with George directing. That's when the stakes were high.

“George Lucas was so larger than life. The secret keeper. The wizard behind the curtain. It felt like in that moment maybe my whole context is about to shift.

YouTube/The New York Times

“I went for it. I remember wearing my best jean, leather-collar, bad boy jacket.”

A young Michael felt pretty confident after his audition, and even thought that just maybe he was ‘about to set out on the biggest adventure’ of his life.

But despite his screen test ‘making everybody in the room cry’ - as we now all know, the role ultimately went to Lloyd, but it appears Michael has no hard feelings about missing out.

YouTube/The New York Times

Sending a message to Lloyd, he said: “Jake was such a nice boy. I really, really hope he’s doing well. I feel like we have a lot in common.”

Michael also hit out at the negative attention that young Lloyd received following the movie’s release.

“When you tell a 10-year-old they’re absolute crap, they hear you,” he said.

“People think we’re showbiz kids, you know, we’re used to rejection. We don’t mind it when you criticize the way that we are, think, look, act - but we’re still kids, man.

“The dark side can happen to anybody, right? But it depends on how you tell your own story, how you tell your story yourself.

"Maybe that’s what the force is - giving yourself personal permission to see things differently.”

Topics: Celebrity, Star Wars, Film and TV

Claire Reid

Claire is a journalist at UNILAD who, after dossing around for a few years, went to Liverpool John Moores University. She graduated with a degree in Journalism and a whole load of debt. When not writing words in exchange for money she is usually at home watching serial killer documentaries surrounded by cats.