Star Wars fans torn over identity of the real Chosen One

Star Wars fans seem to be a little confused over the identity of the real Chosen One, but we get it.

In the Star Wars mythos, the “Chosen One” is a prophesied individual who is said will bring balance to the Force by destroying the Sith.

The prophecy wasn’t a thing in the Star Wars original trilogy, but was an invention by George Lucas by the time he came to writing The Phantom Menace and the rest of the prequel trilogy.

And for these three films, it was believed by several characters that Anakin Skywalker was the Chosen One. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan believed this, for example, while the Jedi council did not.

As we see at the end of Return of the Jedi, balance is brought to the Force when Anakin (then as Darth Vader) defeats Emperor Palpatine after seeing his son Luke being tortured by Palps’ lightning fingers.

He then dies himself, taking the last of the Sith with him and ultimately fulfilling the prophecy. But Anakin could not have been brought back from the Dark Side without Luke, prompting a bit of a hot debate in Star Wars fandom circles as to who the real Chosen One actually is.

Over on the Star Wars Reddit page, user Kudder86 had the same confusion, asking the community who they thought was the real Chosen One: Anakin or Vader?

“Not to mention one wouldn’t have “brought balance” without the other,” they wrote. “Luke didn’t kill Palpatine, Vader did. But Vader wouldn’t have done it if he didn’t see his son, the only connection he has left of Padmé. A true jedi, not the corrupted Jedi of ages old, stand his ground & not turn to the Dark Side.”

“Anakin,” the top comment writes. “He brings balance to the Force. In a really long, drawn-out, roundabout way. But he did it.”

“It's true that he needed Luke to be there,” added another. “That doesn't make Luke the ‘chosen one’ though.”

A third user added: “Mace summarizes it [the prophecy] as the ‘one who will bring balance to the Force’. Anakin tipped it. But through him and Padme they brought Luke/Leia into the world and they were to bring balance.

“And this for me is further established when Obi-Wan says he’s the last hope, referring to Luke, and Yoda counters with there is another. Through the Force Luke and Leia were twins to ensure that one of them will bring balance.”

I like this interpretation best, as the answer for who is the Chosen One exactly ultimately becomes “both”, thereby settling the debate.