Movies - TV
Why Jake Lloyd Really Quit Acting After Star Wars
By SANDY SCHAEFER
"The Phantom Menace" wasn't the grand return to the franchise people wanted, and it resulted in "Star Wars" fans abusing the movie's cast and crew online.
One of the actors who suffered the most was Jake Lloyd, who played young Anakin. It has been rumored that Lloyd quit acting due to this backlash; however, that is not true.
Lloyd’s mother, Lisa, spoke with Scripps News about her son. She explained he quit acting due to a combination of her son’s poor mental health and other factors.
Lisa revealed that the young actor was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia after years of mental health problems while he was growing up.
Lloyd also has anosognosia — a condition the National Alliance on Mental Illness describes as a person being unaware of their mental health condition or its severity.
“He didn’t think he needed to take medication because he wasn’t sick. He didn’t think he needed to go to the therapist because there’s nothing wrong with him,” Lisa explained.
Lisa also cited her divorce from Jake Lloyd’s biological father as a factor in his quitting, explaining that “Jake didn’t seem to be having a lot of fun auditioning anymore.”
Following being arrested and losing his younger sister years earlier, Lloyd was admitted to a hospital in 2023 after having what Lisa described as a “full-blown psychotic break.”
Lloyd is reported to be doing well in his recovery and remains a “Star Wars” fan, according to Lisa. She shared that he recently watched the “Ahsoka” series on Disney+.