10 Sequels That Stupidly Changed The Main Character

The Original: OK, as the Mr Plinkett reviews famously pointed out, there isn't any clearly defined protagonist in The Phantom Menace, but let's use logic to figure out who it's intended to be (as I always say, the prequels are good ideas poorly executed, not rotten to the core).

Given the trilogy is about Anakin's fall, you'd expect it to be him, yet lil' Ani doesn't turn up until halfway through the film. That leaves Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan. Because Liam Neeson goes ashore on Tatooine, he gets the most screentime, but in terms of arc and future, it's Ewan McGregor. Mystery solved.

The Sequel: There's no such debate in Episode II; the lead is clearly the future Darth Vader, smooching his way through bad dialogue and supposedly being the emotional core of the story and serving as the character side to this massive, global conflict. The problem is, Lucas really flubs the love story (and, as a result of lack of focus, the emergence of the Clone Wars too). He really should have kept the focus on Obi-Wan; the Jedi detective stuff is the most interesting part of the film and shows Ewan McGregor's Kenobi at his best.

In truth it's an overall bigger problem with the prequel trilogy; making Anakin the lead means you're stuck telling a known story, so of course the telling would struggle.