"Actually, I've been thinking about going to Cambridge University for a semester or two." Hayden Christensen pauses as we both contemplate the scene. Darth Vader stalking the hallowed corridors of King's College or Trinity... terrorising the collegiate.
For the last five years, 24-year-old Christensen has been wedded to contractual commitments from his role as Anakin Skywalker in the final Star Wars trilogy. In the next few weeks it all comes to an end and he is finally released from his intergalactic bondage. 'Returning to school' is an option he has been considering "for at least the last two years".
"Star Wars is its own brand," explains Christensen. "It's like being a part of Coca Cola. It is a massive global force. I've been to places that don't even have electricity, and the people still know who Darth Vader is. But the experience has had its ups and downs.
"The thing that scares me most is the merchandising. Around the time of release the Star Wars logo is on everything. It's disconcerting to go into your convenience store and you're there as Darth Vader on bubble gum, potato chips, soda, you name it - and you try to avoid seeing yourself but are surrounded by thousands of little pictures of yourself and you cannot get away and end up standing still looking at the floor.
"And then there are the dolls. There are millions of little action figures made in my image that do not look anything like me. It's really very freaky. They send me one of everything that is made and I have boxes and boxes of them. I don't open them. I just keep them in my parents' garage. They will be worth a lot more in years to come if they are unopened. I'm just thinking ahead in case this all fails - you know."
Despite the reservations, the 'end' has affected him emotionally. "I felt very choked up when I realised that this was it. Before Star Wars I'd never left North America and since I've been to like 20 different countries. It's been an awesome experience. But once it is over, I can get on with my life."
The Star Wars curse
In the flesh, as on screen, Christensen is a formidable presence, clean cut and, at six foot tall, built like an athlete, dressed in cool, understated jeans and leather jacket.
Whether acting will continue to be his chosen profession appears to be open for discussion. Both critics and Star Wars aficionados savaged his performance in Star Wars. "Well that’s how it is sometimes," frowns the thespian now suddenly looking even younger that his 24 years. "I really had to keep reminding myself that George Lucas had seen something in me that deserved the part."
There is also the danger of being typecast, a malady suffered by Mark Hamill who after playing Luke Skywalker barely worked again. "Maybe that was a problem twenty or thirty years ago," says Hayden defensively.
"But now there's a blockbuster every year and people, saturated with all these different characters, forget more easily. Besides it didn't do Harrison Ford any harm."
The next film the Vancouver-born actor embarks on is a psychological thriller called Awake with Sigourney Weaver, he plays "a good guy – finally - everyone around me is bad." Prior to that you will see him in Decameron: Angels & Virgins directed by British TV director David Leland.
"It is an adaptation of Boccaccio's original but luckily I avoided wearing tights as there is a contemporary slant" he laughs. He also was well received in the critically acclaimed 2003 project, Shattered Glass, based on a true story where Christensen played the disgraced journalist Stephen Glass caught fabricating stories for The New Republic.
Indelible mark
But whatever else he does, Star Wars leaves an indelible mark. "Being Darth Vader, one of the most notorious screen villains of all time, is not something I think I will ever get my head round," he ponders.
"Darth had more resonance with me as a child than the rest of the characters and imitating the voice was a great way to scare my little sister, so it's very surreal, very bizarre and I suppose very cool to have played him."
"I guess I have an affinity with villainous characters. I love playing them." Christensen leans forward in his armchair. We are sitting in a corner of the studio where earlier Hayden posed for a shoot accompanied by the discarded mask of Darth Vader.
"People's dark sides have always intrigued me - what lurks beneath the surface. I love Pacino and the way he can turn it on and off like in the Godfather; at the beginning he was the shy, quiet, law-abiding respectable member of the family and by part 2 he was this monster who could kill his own brother. It was a similar arc to Anakin in Star Wars. Though I've a lot to learn from Pacino."
And he will take some great memories away from the Star Wars experience. "The best part was the light sabre fight with Ewan McGregor in Sith. Ewan is a great guy, I get on with him really well. We both have a great affinity for our light sabres – no pun intended - and we'd always spar when we had a spare few minutes. So when we got to Sydney to film Sith we argued them into letting us do the scene ourselves and really went for it - no stunt guys - and it works even though we were black and blue afterwards. It was like being nine years old playing your favourite game with your friend."
By nature Hayden is self-effacing. At one point he confesses: "I found it hard dealing with all the girls shouting and screaming for us. I have always questioned why we as actors get such attention. I can understand it if it was towards a football or hockey team as there is some competition but not actors. I just don't get it."
He is also keen not to ignite interest in his personal life. "I haven't a girlfriend at the moment," he responds when I pry. "It's difficult holding a relationship down when you travel as much as I do. I've just come out of a relationship so I guess there's not much to write about. And anyway I'm not a very public person."
"My dad wasn't happy when I told him I wasn't finishing school but was going to act instead. Acting seemed really out of character for me and to him acting is, and always will be, something without much dignity. It isn't a worthy way of earning a living. My dad's plan was for me to follow my older brother and sister into a sports scholarship. I did well at sports, particularly ice hockey, which I loved. I'm still a huge Maple leaf supporter. My dream would have been to be the captain of the Toronto Maples and even today, when I see the kids I grew up with on TV playing pro hockey, I wonder - what if?"
Which brings us, full circle, back to the as-yet-to-be-decided issue of his future. "It's nice not to have it too mapped out," Hayden offers realising, I think, how rootless he must appear. "Maybe 10 years from now I'll be living on a farm, and I'll be very happy."
Perhaps. Just don't let anyone open the boxes in the garage.
"The only gadgets I use are portable: A Blackberry for Emails, an iPod for music and a PSP," says Hadyen Christensen when asked about his gagdets of choice.
Christensen also loves the Star Wars Video Game. "I have an X Box at home but these days I can't really qualify myself as a gamer as I am too busy running around the world. I helped create my character for the game," he says proudly.
"I was invited to meet the game programmers to tell them how the character fought and moved and such. I was seven when the first Nintendo came out (which is still the greatest console ever) so I am a prime age for games and was brought up with them so to be honest it is pretty neat to see yourself on that platform. If I've the time I usually play sports games," he adds.
"But I can't support the likes of Grand Theft Auto; they are so blatantly and gratuitously violent and there is enough of that in the world. There is little aim apart from going on some huge killing rampage.
"I have played the Star Wars game as Annakin on a number of occasions," he admits. "I mean you have to if only to see what it is like... hey! It's a giggle and I’ve done all the research so why waste it!"
and calls some other celebs who IMO are much classier than her sl*ts etc 
. At a NY Hustle & Flow screening, Dec 18th.
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