Lisa Lloyd, the mother of “Star Wars” child actor Jake Lloyd, explained his absence from Hollywood after beating out 3,000 other young actors to play Anakin Skywalker.
Lisa said Jake was diagnosed with Schizophrenia and has been struggling to cope with mental health challenges, during a recent interview with Scripps News. She gave a rare update on his condition, telling fans that the child star suffered a psychiatric break that led to the discovery of his diagnosis. “He didn’t tell us he was hearing voices at the time. But he was,” Lisa said. “When they finally told him, it totally threw him off into an even worse depression.”
Lisa disclosed that Jake continues to live in a mental health facility, years after he was diagnosed with schizophrenia. She described him as being a different person than the young boy portrayed in the 1999 “Star Wars: Phantom Menace,” but said he still very much loves “Star Wars” and valued the time he spent on-set during filming.
George Lucas director of Star Wars, Amanda Lucas, Jett Lucas and Jake Lloyd attend the after party of the San Francisco World Premiere of Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith at the Loews Theaters Metreon on May 12, 2005 in San Francisco, California. Photo by David Paul Morris/Getty Images
Jake was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and anosognosia in 2008 and noted that the condition runs on her son’s father’s side of the family, according to Scripps News. Lisa said he initially refused to be medicated because he didn’t believe he required help.
Lisa said the backlash he suffered for appearing in the science-fiction prequel wasn’t the cause of his mental break, and said he would have inevitably suffered from this condition, regardless.
Screening of “Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope”, followed by “Empire Strikes Back”, “Return Of The Jedi”, “Phantom Menace” and “Attack Of The Clones”, before tonight’s UK premiere of “Revenge Of The Sith”. Photo by Jim Dyson/Getty Images
Lisa detailed the troubles Jake faced during his struggles with mental illness. She said he was sentenced to 10 months in jail in 2015, after leading deputies through a high-speed chase in South Carolina. She said the young actor’s breaking point came after his sister Madison died in her sleep in 2018, at the age of 26.
Actor Jake Lloyd and Jett Lucas attend the after party of the San Francisco World Premiere of Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith at the Loews Theaters Metreon on May 12, 2005 in San Francisco, California. Photo by David Paul Morris/Getty Images
“He just couldn’t handle it. He didn’t know how to process it,” Lisa told Scripp News.
She said Jake suffered another major setback in March 2023 after an incident that unfolded in her car while picking up food from Mcdonald’s.
Liam Neeson organized the sale of movie memorabilia as part of Movie Action for Children, a fundraiser for UNICEF. The auction will take place on 06 March 2001. AFP PHOTO/ Doug KANTER
“He said he wanted to turn the car off. And he turned the car off in the middle of the three lanes, and we were in the middle lane. There was a lot of yelling and screaming,” she said.
San Francisco World Premiere of Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith at the Loews Theaters Metreon on May 12, 2005 in San Francisco, California. Photo by David Paul Morris/Getty Images
“The police got there, and they asked Jake some questions. He was talking to them, but none of it made sense. It was all word salad,” Lisa said. Jake went into rehab for treatment the next day, according to Scripps News.
The “Star Wars” star has eight months to go in an 18-month outpatient treatment program. (RELATED: ‘I Kinda Don’t Recognize Myself’: Slipknot’s Corey Taylor Reveals Mental Health Struggle)
“He is relating to people better and becoming a little bit more social, which is really nice,” Lisa said.