Star Wars child star's life after fame - health diagnosis, loss and arrest
Star Wars fans may remember Jake Lloyd for his role as young Anakin Skywalker in the first instalment of the franchise's prequel trilogy Episode I: The Phantom Menace.
The former actor, then around nine, appeared in the film - which was released back in 1999 - alongside the likes of Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor and Natalie Portman.
Jake earned a Young Artist Award for his performance and although he didn't reprise the role in the sequels, he did feature in video games shortly after the film's release.
It wasn't his first role anyway, as he'd starred alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger in the festive comedy Jingle All The Way (1997) and had roles in projects like Apollo 11 (1996).
And although he starred in one of the biggest franchises, things haven't been easy for Jake in the decades since he played young Anakin in the first of the Star Wars prequels.
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Retirement
Jake Lloyd played young Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars film The Phantom Menace (Keith Hamshere/Lucasfilm/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)
The actor later spoke about the reaction he received from his peers at the time (FilmMagic, Inc)Following his big break as the character, Jake worked on a few films such including Madison (2001) but is said to have retired from acting in the years since his Star Wars role.
It's been suggested that his peers' reactions and the challenges of being a young actor led to his retirement, with him once saying that his school life became a "living hell".
As reported by the Daily Mail, Jake said years after the film that he sometimes had to do 60 interviews a day and recalled the reaction he received from his peers at the time.
He commented during an interview once: "Other children were really mean to me. They would make the sound of the light saber every time they saw me. It was totally mad."
Although he decided to retire from acting, Jake is later credited as having been a production assistant on a short film titled Peer Pressure, which was released in 2009.
Jake, pictured with the film's director George Lucas (centre left), later retired from acting (Getty Images)He doesn't appear to have worked on any TV or film projects in the more than a decade since then, but did reportedly study film and psychology at Columbia College in Chicago.
Later life
Jake hasn't been in the public eye much in the decades since his most notable role, though it was reported by TMZ in 2015 that he was involved in an alleged assault.
The outlet reported that police were called to his mother Lisa Lloyd's home on March 26, with it alleged that Jake had been verbally abusive and then violent.
According to TMZ, his mother said at the time that he had schizophrenia and that he hadn't been taking medication. She reportedly declined to press charges.
Lisa later told the outlet that her son isn't a violent person, with her having further commented that he had showed signs of schizophrenia since he was around 19.
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The alleged incident attracted attention after Jake was arrested months later after allegedly leading police on a 'high-speed chase' in South Carolina before crashing into trees.
He's believed to have not appeared in any roles in the years (WireImage)
He was arrested following an alleged high speed chase in 2015 (REX/Shutterstock)It was reported that the driver gave his name as Jake Broadbent, though the actor was said to have been identified through other details such as his date of his birth.
According to NBC News and other outlets at the time, the man was charged with failure to stop, reckless driving and driving without a license.
Jake is said to have spent 10 months in jail following the alleged incident and but was reportedly moved to a psychiatric facility in 2016 so he could receive treatment.
Lisa spoke to TMZ around that time and shared an update about her son's well being, telling the outlet that she could already see an improvement in Jake's personality.
Tragically, the family are understood to have experienced heartache a few years later when his younger sister Madison Lloyd died in her sleep, aged 26, in 2018. Lisa reportedly described the loss as "shattering" to her and Jake.
She shared an update about Jake to Geek News Now in 2020, saying in a statement: "We would like to thank everyone for their kind words, their support, and goodwill.
"Jake has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, but unfortunately he also has a symptom called anosognosia which causes a lack of insight into his illness.
"This only adds to the struggle he faces, which has been very difficult after the tragic loss of his younger sister, Madison. He has moved closer to his family andwe are all working hard to help him with this.
"He is still a kind and caring person and we hope to have him back to his fun and entertaining self as soon as possible. Jake will continue to make progress with the love and support you continue to show."
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