Nicolas Cage saw something in Hayden Christensen's Star Wars performances that we didn't.
Most people hate the Star Wars prequels. The main reason most people hate the Star Wars prequels is the shoddy acting. More specifically, Hayden Christensen's acting. Sure, he and Natalie Portman, Samuel L. Jackson and Ewan McGregor were working with some awful, awful scripts, but still, it was bad.
Hayden Christensen came in for heavy criticism for the Star Wars prequels
Still, Christensen's performance as Anakin Skywalker has at least one high profile fan, in Nicolas Cage. Doing press for his latest movie Outcast, the Hollywood actor singled out Christensen's work in the prequels for particular praise.
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"And so, I watched George's movies, and the work Hayden did with George, and I was very impressed with Hayden's sort of edgy, dangerous, dark and still soulful performance," Cage explained to IGN. "I thought it was superb. And so I really connected with him."
Nicolas Cage is back in 'Outcast'
"Plus he has a look in his eyes that I respond to," Cage added, "Because it almost feels familial. He's got that sad thing in his eyes that I've always been accused of having in my eyes. I thought we would be a good match on camera together - it just seemed like a good fit. And I'm happy to say it worked out. He's also a lovely man - he's a very nice man. And I hope to continue our friendship."
Outcast - out on a limited run in the U.S on February 6 - tells the story of a mysterious warrior who teams up with the daughter and son of a deposed Chinese Emperor to defeat their cruel brother, who seeks their deaths.
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