The orange-yellow eyes of Sith lords are a distinctive mark of their dark side powers. In the case of Anakin, his eyes turned that color soon after he became Darth Vader.
Yet, Count Dooku’s eyes never changed.
Why do we have this divergence? Much of the explanation has to do with their relationship to the dark side.
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Why Did Anakin’s Eyes Go Orange So Quickly When Dooku’s Never Changed?
In Revenge of the Sith, when Anakin transformed into Darth Vader, his eyes changed to the Sith orange-yellow color.
We see a glimpse when he decimated Separatist leaders on Mustafar, but the full realization after his loss to Obi-Wan when he had attempted his fateful leap and lost three of his limbs.
As he looked up at Obi-Wan, his eyes completely became Sith-like.
One reason Anakin’s eyes turned orange so quickly is that “Vader was a lot different.” Anakin’s transformation into Vader was fueled by hate and anger, especially after his loss to Obi-Wan.
In contrast, Dooku was “not controlled by hatred or anger” and thereby not completely “consumed by the full power of the dark side.”
Even before, Anakin had anger issues, as reflected in his decapitation of Dooku. Dooku instead strove to be in control even when lightsaber fighting.
In his duel with Obi-Wan and Anakin in Attack of the Clones, Dooku appeared calm and ready to handle both combatants.
Another reason for this quick change and no-change scenario concerns the Sith.
As this video explains, yellow-orange Sith eyes are “not merely a physical trait but a symbol of complete surrender to the dark side’s corrupting influence.”
Anakin became consumed by this corrupting influence, while Dooku did not, but the latter was also “an outlier” and “master of Sith alchemy.”
Dooku used the mask technique to conceal his allegiance to the dark side and maintain his composure at all times.
This aspect of Sith alchemy was not widely used and distinguished Dooku and Palpatine by their control over it. In this case, Dooku could rely on it to conceal the color of his eyes.
Anakin and Darth Vader did not master this aspect of the Sith, nor do they need to, given Anakin’s willful rage and Vader’s concealed face.
Hayden Christensen Suggested Anakin’s Sith Eyes—and Lucas Changed His Mind
A third reason why Anakin’s eyes changed so rapidly was to announce the emergence of Darth Vader.
In other words, his yellow-orange eyes served as “a visual representation of his descent to evil” for audiences watching the third prequel.
This visual cue completes Anakins’ character arc and showcases his final downfall.
This visual transformation was not popular with George Lucas at first.
While filming Episode III, Hayden felt that Anakin’s transformation needed a more visible turning point. He had already studied the look of previous Sith like Darth Maul and Emperor Palpatine, and he believed Anakin should have those same eyes to reflect the depth of his fall.
In an interview with Empire, Hayden recalled: “It needed an observable shift in character, and this was actually the origin of George and I discussing giving Anakin Sith eyes. Originally, there was no mention of it, and George was initially against the idea when I brought it up. I loved the visual of Sith eyes and thought it could make sense: Darth Maul had them, and Sidious has them. George responded, saying that Count Dooku didn’t, and I thought that was the end of that. A few days later, he came back to me and said he thought about it some more and now liked the idea of Sith eyes—but not for that scene.”
Lucas agreed the visual was powerful, but he had a different idea for where to use it. Instead of showing the Sith eyes right after Anakin turns on Mace Windu, Lucas waited until the Mustafar massacre, where Anakin fully gives himself over to hatred and slaughter. That’s the moment where the eyes appear—where there’s no turning back.
Anakin and Dooku’s Eyes
Anakin’s eyes changed quickly to orange because of his complete submersion into the dark side and because of the visual effects.
Dooku did not transform because he did not submerge himself so completely and he used Sith alchemy to control and conceal his appearance.