The unfortunate fate of "star boy" Jake Lloyd, who played Anakin Skywalker

Children whose parents strive to make stars against all odds are rarely happy in life. Jake Lloyd, known to millions for the role of Anakin Skywalker in the movie "Star Wars. Episode 1: The Hidden Menace", was no exception. As a child, he did not belong to himself and was a toy in the hands of vain adults. This could not but affect his fate later, which turned out to be quite unenviable.

Jake Lloyd's childhood ended at the age of 7, when the boy's parents decided to make him a movie star. The family lived in North Hollywood and success stories constantly surrounded the Lloyds. It was easier for them to promote a young film actor than for many other parents. Jake's aunt owned The Osbrink Agency, which was engaged in the search and promotion of talents.

A handsome boy with a serious face quickly attracted the TV viewers. The first roles, albeit episodic, were not long in coming. Lloyd's debut was the television series "Ambulance", released in 1996. Immediately after the first success, the boy's parents received offers from the big cinema. In the same year, Jake managed to appear in three films at once: "A Gift for Christmas", "Get off the stars" and "Apollo 11".

Following the flurry of roles came a short period of calm. The young star gnawed the granite of science at school, starred in commercials and played baseball with her peers. Some suggested that this was the end of Lloyd's career, as often happened with child actors. But it wasn't there. The year 1998 came and offers fell on Jake again.

Having abandoned his lessons and careless peers, Jake again began to wander around the film sets with his parents. 1998 brought him two roles – in the fantasy thriller "Virtual Obsession" and the fantasy series "The Pretender". Even adult actors could envy such an experience of a 9-year-old child in cinema and on television. Therefore, when director George Lucas got his hands on the boy's portfolio, he immediately made a mark on it.

The following year, 1999, permanently inducted Jake Lloyd into the Hollywood Hall of Fame. Lucas chose a boy for a role in the science fiction movie "Star Wars. Episode 1: The Hidden Menace." The picture became the main film event of the year, and Jake became a global star. The boy was attacked not only by fame, but also by a real barrage of criticism.

Anakin Skywalker, Lloyd's hero, was taken apart, and the young actor received his share of haight. There were a lot of complaints about him, but most often Jake was accused of being unnatural. He was nicknamed the "Skywalker Dummy" for his stiffness in the frame, almost automatic, "wooden" movements and lack of facial expressions.

The attacks in the press made the actor's parents more nervous. But he himself also got it, however, from classmates. The envy of his peers made Jake's school life unbearable. It was a real bullying with all its ugly manifestations and, alas, the consequences. The pressure was so strong that the Lloyd family decided to leave their son alone and no longer promote him in the cinema.

But Jake Lloyd had a contract with two more years to go. Fortunately for everyone, a compromise was found with the producers. The boy worked out the contract, voicing video games on "Star Wars". In 2000, the actor was involved in the cinema for the last time. It was a good movie "Madison", which had to lie on the shelf for 4 years due to legal difficulties.

Having put an end to his son's film career, the Lloyd family left California and moved to Indiana. There, Jake graduated from school in 2007 and began an independent life. Not too successful in finding himself in Indiana, the young man goes to Illinois, to Chicago. There he begins to study film editing and film directing.

The guy liked everything, he had a goal and his parents were happy. But at the end of the first semester of study, Jake suddenly cools down to study and drops out. And less than a year later, it becomes clear why he acted so unpredictably — Lloyd Jr. was diagnosed with schizophrenia.

Timely access to specialists allowed Jake to avoid the ordeal of clinics. For several years, he lived like an ordinary young man, without betraying his illness in anything. But then came a sharp deterioration. To the main mental illness, doctors added a second diagnosis – "anosognosia". This is a condition in which a schizophrenic patient cannot perceive his actions critically and does not consider himself sick.

Lloyd quits treatment and starts his own business. First, he becomes the host of events dedicated to "Star Wars". Hangouts and shows in nightclubs dedicated to fantastic worlds are liked by the guy and he willingly communicates with the press and fans.

Jake even got some money, which he invested in his own film company. He had a lot of plans — to make a documentary, move closer to the sea and even get married. Lloyd also called the date of the wedding, which was to take place in 2014.

But the wedding was canceled for unknown reasons. In January 2015, the man simply announced the termination of the engagement. And already in March, his diagnosis caused him and others trouble for the first time. During the exacerbation of the disease, Jake broke down the doors in his parents' house and began to destroy everything there. The mother also got it, who was forced to call the police.

At that time, Lloyd managed to evade responsibility, though not for long. Already in June, he was detained in South Carolina by the police, as he behaved inappropriately behind the wheel of a car. During the arrest, Jake introduced himself with an assumed name, and later it turned out that he lived with false documents.

Of course, the former star was also remembered for the debauch at her parents' house. Lloyd was already preparing to go to jail for several years, but his lawyers saved him. They were able to prove the man's insanity, which was quite easy to do at that time. As a result, he went for compulsory treatment in a psychiatric clinic with a diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia.

After the doors of the clinic closed behind Lloyd, he disappeared for the whole world. In 2020, journalists managed to have a short conversation with his parents and they reported that he was still undergoing treatment. The relatives refused to answer questions about whether 31-year-old Jake had left the walls of a mental hospital at least for a while and whether there was hope for his return to normal life.