Star Wars’description ofAnakin Skywalkeris truly shocking, as it suggests that Anakin failed to live up to his potential (which is perhaps somewhat well-known) and that he did not become the most powerful Jedi after all. Anakin has long been considered one ofStar Wars’most powerful Jedi, even with his eventual turn to the dark side.
However, one description of Anakin on display at San Diego Comic-Con 2025, also provided intheStar Warsdatabank, explains that Anakin"had the potential to become one of the most powerful Jedi ever.“This wording regarding Anakin’s ‘potential’ suggests that he didn’t actually become one of the most powerful in the end, which is a massive revelation.
Anakin Skywalker Has The “Potential” To Be The Most Powerful Jedi
While Surprising, This Aligns With Star Wars' Midi-Chlorians
While there’s long been debate about whether Anakin was truly the single most powerful Jedi in the galaxy or if it was another prominent character, such as Master Yoda or even Anakin’s own son, Luke Skywalker,it’s consistently considered true that Anakin was among the most powerful.
After all, Anakin wasthe Chosen One, and he went toe-to-toe with some ofStar Wars’most powerful Sith. Yet, this description certainly suggests that, while Anakin initially had the potential to achieve that level of greatness and power, he ultimately failed to do so.
This is a surprising and potentially even controversial representation of Anakin, but it actually makes a fair bit of sense, particularly when considered alongsidemidi-chlorians inStar Wars. Although a concept that remains relatively unpopular even today, midi-chlorians were introduced inStar Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menacespecifically related to Anakin.
That is, Qui-Gon was in part convinced that Anakin was so special because his midi-chlorian count was so high. We now know, though, that midi-chlorians are not an exact measurement of one’s strength in the Force. Instead,midi-chlorians represent one’s potential in the Force, which makes these concepts perfectly aligned.
Did Anakin Ever Achieve His Potential?
Anakin Became Incredibly Powerful, But He Likely Did Not Reach His Full Potential
AlthoughStar Warsseems to take a clear stance (with a certain degree of still being open to interpretation), the question remains: Did Anakin actually fail to live up to his full potential and become the most powerful Jedi in the end? Unfortunately, the answer seems much more likely to be yes than no, even outside this description.
Did Anakin actually fail to live up to his full potential and become the most powerful Jedi in the end?
While it’s difficult to say with certainty that Anakin wasn’t the most powerful Jedi overall, there are a number of strong examples suggesting he was not. After all, Anakin couldn’t successfully overpower Obi-Wan during their Mustafar battle inStar Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith.
This also wasn’t just because of Obi-Wan’s high ground trick, either.Before Anakin made that fateful leap, he and Obi-Wan went quite literally hand-to-hand with the Force, and they were evenly matched. This suggests that, at minimum, Anakin was not more powerful than Obi-Wan.
As he was then restricted to the Darth Vader suit, which absolutely limited his strength (and he was no longer a Jedi), it’s safe to say he wasn’t the most powerful Jedi inStar Wars. The most shocking aspect of this description, however, isStar Warsseemingly suggesting thatAnakin Skywalkerdidn’t even becomeone ofthe most powerful.
