'PSYCHOTIC BREAK'

‘Star Wars’ Child Actor Struggles With Paranoid Schizophrenia, Mom Reveals

Lisa Lloyd says that her son Jake Lloyd, who played Anakin in “The Phantom Menace” at just 8 years old, has struggled with his condition since leaving Hollywood.

Jake Lloyd played Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace 25 years ago when he was just 8 years old. He then left the spotlight, and his life since his big screen debut has remained somewhat of a mystery. But Lloyd’s mother, Lisa Lloyd, opened up to Scripps News this week and revealed details about Jake’s struggle with mental illness. She said that in March 2008, Jake was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, after years of complaining of alternate realities and visions. “When they finally told him, it totally threw him off into an even worse depression,” Lisa told Scripps and added, “It was really hard.” She also details a run-in Jake had with the law, in which he led Florida police on a high-speed chase, crashed his car, and landed in jail—a result of not taking his medication. After his sister Madison, who also appeared in Phantom Menace as an extra, died in her sleep at only 26 in 2023, Lisa said that Jake had a “full blown psychotic break.” Now, Jake is “doing much better than I expected,” and is still a fan of the Star Wars saga.