MTV features an interview with Jake Lloyd, who played Anakin Skywalker in Episode I. Here are a few excerpts:

"None of us really understood exactly how much that film would affect us for the rest of our lives," he says of 1999's "The Phantom Menace," the prequel that ended nearly two decades of Star Wars inactivity while casting the then-8-year-old as a pre-pubescent Darth Vader. "I had some issues," Lloyd says of his post-Anakin Skywalker years. "When I first had to deal with being in Star Wars, you know, who wouldn't?"

The former child actor says he and his family decided to pull the disappearing act after suffering through a "Menace" publicity tour that found the youngster defending himself against an endless stream of acerbic reporters. "One interview I was doing, this guy, he came in," Lloyd shakes his head. "I had to do about 60 interviews in a day ... This guy comes in and sits down and says, 'So, what's it like to portray Jesus Christ?' 'Well, I'm 10.' "

That question, referring to Star Wars creator George Lucas' divisive decision to reveal Anakin as a Christ figure whose mother birthed him through immaculate conception, was simply a tumbling speck of dirt compared to the avalanche of criticism that would assail Lloyd after the film's release. Time magazine called the boy's line readings "flat, or flat-out wrong," while Variety dismissed him as a "standard-issue tyke hero."

Hit the link above to read the rest of the article. Thanks to Kevin for the alert.