To anyone paying attention to Ahsoka‘s production, Anakin Skywalker’s arrival was a matter of when rather than if. In October 2022, it was widely reported that Hayden Christensen would be appearing in the show, with most assuming it’d be as a Force Ghost or in a flashback to the The Clone Wars era when Ahsoka was his padawan.
The reality has proved to be far more mysterious. Ahsoka appears to have fallen off a cliff and landed in ‘The World Between Worlds’, a mystical dimension outside of linear time. In Rebels, Ahsoka Tano’s life was saved by Ezra using this dimension, with him yanking her out of the timeline as Vader was about to land a killing blow. Now Anakin is here, looking like not a day has passed since Revenge of the Sith.
He seems friendly enough, though the episode closing out with a subtle reprise of John Williams’ Darth Vader theme doesn’t exactly bode well…
Why is Anakin in The World Between Worlds?
Before Darth Vader’s battle with Ahsoka in Rebels, it seems Vader had no idea that The World Between Worlds existed. Even after that, it’s unclear whether he realized what had happened to Ahsoka as the moment she was rescued, he fell through the floor as the temple collapsed. That said, Vader’s subsequent actions indicate that he assumed Ahsoka had died there, so we doubt he ever knew about it while alive.
After his death? That’s another story. The rules on where Force Ghosts can go (or even what they are) remain vague, though the timey-wimey dimension seems like the kind of place a spirit might well end up. But it’s interesting that while this Anakin looks somewhat ethereal (this may simply be iffy de-ageing CGI), he doesn’t have the blue glowing outline of other Force Ghosts.
So, if Ahsoka can be saved from her death by Ezra, perhaps it’s possible for someone to save Anakin from his in Revenge of the Sith? That said, Star Wars actually resurrecting Anakin Skywalker would be the moment the franchise jumps the shark, so we doubt he’s a permanent addition to the cast.
If he’s not a Force Ghost or a man, what is he?
It’s possible that someone or something is showing Ahsoka her heart’s desire: her old friend and mentor before being corrupted into Darth Vader. This could be an involuntary psychic manifestation or, in a more sinister twist, perhaps Emperor Palpatine is pulling the strings.
At this point in the Star Wars chronology, Palpatine is still recovering from his apparent death, with his consciousness having been sent into a cloned body prepared for that eventuality. This proved a painful existence as the clones weren’t powerful enough to contain his evil essence, leading to his eventual plan to inhabit Rey’s body.
In Rebels, we saw that Palpatine had been trying to harness The World Between Worlds for his own evil ends, and as he’s now a disembodied spirit, this place may be how he moves between his cloned bodies. After all, Palpatine would know precisely what form to take to throw Ahsoka off guard and manipulate her.
Even if Palpatine isn’t involved, this ‘Anakin’ could still be a direct manifestation of the dark side. In The Empire Strikes Back, Luke ventures into the Dark Side Cave as part of his Jedi training, encountering a spirit that takes the form of Darth Vader. If this can happen to Luke, there’s no reason it can’t happen to Ahsoka.
A darker possibility
This may be getting too far into speculation, but in episode 4, we learned that Marrok appears to be some kind of spirit, with the current fan theory that he was a dead warrior resurrected using Morgan Elsbeth’s Nightsister magic. The bad guys are now down a man after Marrok’s end, and what better spirit to bring back from the dead to torment Ahsoka than Anakin himself?
Capping off the show with one final battle between Ahsoka and an undead Anakin as she battles to put his soul to rest would be an emotionally fraught finale to the show, though would admittedly also be a smidge far-fetched.
However it shakes out, Anakin is (apparently) back from the dead, in good spirits, and seems happy to see Ahsoka. Let’s hope the writers don’t drop the ball next week.