Hayden Christensen was making huge headlines back in 2001 when he was first cast for "Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones." He continued to be everywhere in the media until just after 2006 when his work as Anakin Skywalker in the prequel films came to an end.

Since then, the actor, who stirred controversy in the heart of "Star Wars" fans, has seen that star wane. He has been at work in far smaller projects in a world seemingly far, far away.

On Tuesday the Canadian actor returned to the headlines thanks to a rumor of his return to the galaxy far, far away.

Making Star Wars, which has a reputation of reliability, revealed that Christensen could be "trained" for a role in "Episode VIII" by a team from the UK. 

That obviously created tremendous confusion amongst fans and reporters for a number of reasons. First on the list of reasons -- how would he make his return? The second concern? How would people feel about it.

To be sure, Making Star Wars was dubious about the rumor but since then theories have cropped up. Could he be a force ghost? Is he in a flashback sequence or vision? Is he a clone? Is he being resurrected? Could he just be donning the outfit of Darth Vader and appearing in "Rogue One?"

So let us unpack this a bit.

The force ghost seems to be the easiest solution yet it is also the toughest. Easiest why? He appears at the end of "Episode VI" as a force ghost in the canonical versions of the film (the DVD and Blu Rays). Since force ghosts appeared prominently in "Episodes V" and "VI," it is not out of the realm of possibility that they would continue appearing in the new trilogy as well. Maybe this provides an opportunity for Luke to train and learn from his father? Maybe then he passes on his knowledge to the other Jedi.

Maybe, and most importantly, he is the one to communicate with Darth Vader fanboy Kylo Ren and warn him about the path he is taking.

George Lucas noted that the original six movies were Anakin's story of redemption and adding three more episodes to the mix obviously creates a vacuum in the franchise's arc. How do those pieces fit together in this case? While "Episodes IV" through "VI" showed us Luke's ability to avoid his father's mistake, we have yet to see someone turn away from the path. Vader does it on his death day, but no one has been able to do the same without killing themselves. Why not Kylo Ren? Why could Vader not fulfill his goal toward redemption by potentially helping a young dark side user turn from the path and restore balance to the force.

Having him as a ghost also allows for some interaction with Leia and completing a plot thread left open at the end of "Episode VI."

Of course doing this would cause vitriol from fans whose head canon ignores the prequels and sees Sebastian Shaw's ghost presiding over the Endor celebration.

This is the solution that makes the most sense, though others could work.

Let's throw away the clone and resurrection one for a second. Cloning exists in "Star Wars," but it seems far-fetched that Anakin would be cloned exactly as he was in the prequel films. Why would Disney want to go there at all? Resurrecting Vader would likely mean bringing back the Sith Lord in his black suit. But in that case you would not need Christensen as any big body would fit.

Unless he is returning for "Rogue One" and there are scenes in which Darth Vader's mask comes off and reveals his younger self.

Then there is the flashback proposition. There are rumors that flashbacks will make their first appearance in "The Force Awakens" and it is possible that they become a major story telling device in the new trilogy. In that case, it might make sense for Christensen to appear and for the potential to flesh out Anakin's story in the prequels. However, at what point in time would Anakin's story be told? Would it be when he actually creates the famed lightsaber that has become a major part of the new trilogy? Maybe he appears in a vision showing the creation of the lightsaber because the reality of the situation is this - why would they go back into Anakin's past and show it? The prequels, regardless of your tastes, track out Anakin's course and the major events in his life rather clearly. The only moments we do not see are the Clone Wars and the aforementioned creation of the famed lightsaber.

The cartoon series shows Anakin's involvement in the war, so what else would be left to show in the past? Did Anakin make some step toward the dark side at another juncture in the Clone Wars that has been ignored to this point?

That would be the least controversial choice though to be fair, Christensen's polarizing figure in the franchise looms large.

And this brings us to Point 2 -- how would fans feel about it?

There are a lot of fans of the series that despise the prequels and to this point, Disney has done its utmost to marginalize those movies in the marketing of "Episode VII." Search your feelings, you know it to be true.

Jar Jar Binks aside, Christensen's performance as Anakin was the element that drew and continues to draw vitriol from those who dislike the prequel films and bringing him back in a new episode could alienate a lot of fans. One could argue that Disney is using "Episode VII" to regain fans' trust before taking a greater risk to try and connect the three trilogies. Because love it or not, the prequels are canonical and their inclusion makes the story arc revolve around Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader. From the looks of it and based on the Sith Acolytes of "Star Wars: Aftermath," Vader looms large in the post-"Episode VI" world and could still hold a major place in the sequel trilogy. In that case, it is impossible to ignore the elephant in the room -- Christensen. He is Darth Vader for an entire generation.

If Disney manages to pull off this feat and bring Christensen back into the fold to link up the three sets of movies, then the company will have shown its ability to fully embrace the franchise as a whole. It will also be taking a rather uncharacteristic, but surely welcome risk, in its movie making empire.