'Star Wars fame turned my life into a living hell': Former child star Jake 'Anakin Skywalker' Lloyd on why he quit acting



He played an iconic role in one of the biggest movie franchises of all time.

Jake Lloyd had the world at his feet and should have been the envy of every child in the world after playing Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace when he was eight years old.

Instead, the Star Wars actor quit the film industry after his childhood was turned into a 'living hell'.

Fame game: Jake Lloyd, pictured two years ago, quit acting after being bullied following his Star Wars role

The 22-year-old became so haunted by the movie he vowed never to act again and he has stayed true to his word.

He said: 'Other children were really mean to me.

'They would make the sound of the light saber every time they saw me. It was totally mad.'

Jake recalls how busy his young life became and at one point he was doing around 60 interviews a day.

The one: jake played Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace

'My entire school life was really a living hell — and I had to do up to 60 interviews a day.'

Lloyd felt so much anger towards the George Lucas directed film that he destroyed all of his Star Wars memorabilia, and only reprised his role as Anakin for five video games.

The youngster decided to take early retirement from acting as he was no longer able to fit in at school.

He said to a magazine: 'I've learned to hate it when the cameras are pointed at me.'

Jake, whose mother is an entertainment agent, admitted in an interview Scifitv.com that he doesn't like wacthing the film anymore and he blames George for that.



He said: 'When you have something like that there's a lot of expectations for it to meet the standards of the public and I don't think George did that.

'For me to go back and watch it now would be kind of creepy.'



Meanwhile, conceptual artist Ralph McQuarrie passed away at the age of 82, on Saturday.