Hayden Christensen's journey with 'Star Wars' has been a "bumpy one".

The 42-year-old actor is best known for his portrayal of Anakin Skywalker / Darth Vader in the 'Star Wars' prequel trilogy but admitted the experience has not always been a positive one.

When asked for what advice he would give his younger self about 'Star Wars', he told EMPIRE magazine: "It’s been a remarkable experience… I guess if I were to have some advice for me during that general time, in my life, it would be: ‘Patience.’ Because my journey with the character and with 'Star Wars' has at times been a bumpy one… but I’m in a good place with it now. And so that’s why I say patience."

Hayden's co-stars were also interviewed for EMPIRE’S 'Star Wars' Prequels 25th Anniversary Celebration with Liam Neeson admitting part of the appeal of playing Qui-Gon Jinn was that he was killed off in 'The Phantom Menace'.

He said: "It was an appeal. I’m delighted and honoured to be part of George's [Lucas] mythical storytelling, but I didn’t quite fancy signing up for two or three potential sequels."

Ewan McGregor - who portrayed Jedi master Obi-Wan Kenobi - reminisced on his memorable ‘Duel of the Fates’ lightsaber fight with Ray Park, who played Sith warrior Darth Maul.

He said: "Because we were both super-young, and Ray Park was so good, it went on fire — the nature of one-against-one meant that we could really, really go for it. We shot on film, and they over-cranked the camera slightly to slow us down, because we were going so fast. They were worried that people would think we’d been sped up."

Emperor actor Ian McDiarmid said: "The thing that I’m most pleased about… is that every single evil act in all of the 'Star Wars' franchise is either directly or indirectly down to that character. That is total evil, and that’s strangely satisfying as an arc. I do feel fortunate to have been able to do it — and other villains of cinema now have to compete with that."

And Natalie Portman - who played Padmé Amidala - said of preparing for her role: "When I was in Japan doing press for Léon as a 13-year-old, I had the opportunity to see Kabuki theatre. When I saw the designs for the costumes and hair and make-up for Queen Amidala, I immediately thought of that. I tried to use some of the ways I observed the characters moving their eyes, the slow and regal way they moved their bodies, as inspiration for the role."

EMPIRE’S Star Wars Prequels 25th Anniversary Celebration will be available to purchase on newsstands from Thursday 15 February.

For more information, go to www.empireonline.com.