Chosen One/Legends

The Prophecy of the Chosen One was a series of words written in the Journal of the Whills referring to a being that would "restore balance to the Force".

Prophecy
The prophecy was written as thus:


 * ''... And in the time of greatest
 * ''despair, there shall come a savior,
 * ''and he shall be known as:
 * ''THE SON OF THE SUNS.
 * &mdash;Journal of the Whills, 3:127''

Discovery of the Chosen One
In the waning days of the Republic, some members of the Jedi Order, including Qui-Gon Jinn, believed that the prophecy referred to Anakin Skywalker after he was discovered on Tatooine. They supported the claims with several reasons, including:


 * Skywalker had the highest count of midichlorians on record. It was above the limit at which the midichlorian level could be measured&mdash;this limit was twenty-thousand.
 * Anakin may have been conceived by the Force itself, as his mother claimed that there was no father.
 * He came from a world with two suns, a literal translation of the line, The Son of the Suns, although he might not have been born on Tatooine, just raised there.
 * Anakin was behaving as a "savior" during "the time of greatest despair" (Clone Wars).

Indeed, Skywalker's career was an exceptional one. He served with distinction in the Clone Wars and became the youngest member of the Jedi Council.

The climax was when, after having passed through both light and dark, and spending 23 standard years as a Dark Lord of the Sith, Anakin turned his back on the dark side and killed Darth Sidious to save the life of his son, Luke Skywalker.

The Chosen One bore similarities to the Sith'ari of the Sith, and were presumably the same person.

Behind the scenes
It has been argued by some fans that Anakin Skywalker was not the Chosen One, pointing out that his son, Luke, was just as likely a candidate. They point out the following:
 * Luke was also raised on Tatooine, the planet with two suns. Hence, Son of the Suns.
 * Luke did indeed emerge in the time of greatest despair, namely during the time when the Galaxy was ruled by the Sith, while his father appeared in a time of relative peace.
 * It was Luke who encouraged his father to turn his back on the Emperor and he also restored the Jedi Order. Through this, fans have claimed, Luke brought the long awaited "balance" and can be characterized as a messianic figure.

Still, despite these claims, George Lucas maintains that Anakin Skywalker is truly the Chosen One, and not Luke, arguing that it was Anakin who ultimately destroyed the Sith, by destroying both the Emperor and himself.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
 * Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
 * Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi