How Did Anakin Lose His Hand?

Count Dooku cut off Anakin's right arm in their duel on Geonosis at the end of Attack of the Clones, and he wore a mechanical replacement from then on. Here is how it happened, how he paid Dooku back, and how the same wound runs through his son's story.

By Joe GarrattPublished 9 Oct 2026

Anakin lost his hand to Count Dooku. At the end of Attack of the Clones, the two fight in a hangar on Geonosis, and Dooku cuts off Anakin's right arm. Anakin wears a mechanical replacement for the rest of his life. (Attack of the Clones)

The duel on Geonosis#

The Battle of Geonosis ends with Dooku fleeing to a hangar. Anakin and Obi-Wan catch up with him there. Anakin rushes ahead against Obi-Wan's advice and Dooku throws him against the wall with Force lightning. Obi-Wan fights alone and is wounded. (Attack of the Clones)

Anakin gets up and takes over, fighting with his own lightsaber and Obi-Wan's. It doesn't go well. Dooku slices off Anakin's right arm and is about to finish both Jedi when Yoda walks in. While Yoda and Dooku duel, Anakin lies on the floor with Obi-Wan. Dooku escapes by dropping a pillar on the two wounded men. (Attack of the Clones)

In the film's last scene Anakin marries Padmé on Naboo, and the camera lingers on his new mechanical hand holding hers. (Attack of the Clones)

How he paid Dooku back#

Revenge of the Sith opens with a rematch on the Separatist flagship. This time Anakin wins. He cuts off both of Dooku's hands and holds his blades to the Count's throat. Palpatine tells him, "Kill him. Kill him now." Anakin hesitates, then beheads him. (Revenge of the Sith)

Straight afterwards Anakin says he shouldn't have done it, that it's not the Jedi way, because Dooku was an unarmed prisoner. Palpatine waves it away: "It is only natural. He cut off your arm, and you wanted revenge." Interpretation: that's the point of the scene. Palpatine is teaching Anakin that losing control is understandable, a lesson he'll use again within days. (Revenge of the Sith)

He lost the rest on Mustafar#

The hand was only the first loss. At the end of the duel on Mustafar, Anakin tries to leap past Obi-Wan, who cuts off both his legs and his remaining arm, the left. Anakin catches fire at the edge of the lava. By the time Palpatine has him rebuilt as Darth Vader, all four of his limbs are prosthetic. (Revenge of the Sith)

The same wound, passed to Luke#

The original trilogy got there first. At Cloud City in The Empire Strikes Back, Vader cuts off Luke's right hand in their duel, then tells him he is his father. Luke gets a mechanical hand of his own. (The Empire Strikes Back)

In Return of the Jedi it comes full circle. Luke loses his temper on the second Death Star and hacks off Vader's mechanical right hand. He looks at the sparking stump, then at his own black-gloved hand, and stops. The Emperor tells him to take his father's place. Luke throws away his lightsaber: "I'll never turn to the dark side. You've failed, Your Highness. I am a Jedi, like my father before me." (Return of the Jedi)

Interpretation: the lost hand is the saga's sign of what anger costs. Anakin loses his rushing in against Dooku, takes Dooku's hands in revenge, takes Luke's, and Luke breaks the pattern only when he sees the same wound on both of them and chooses not to go on. (Attack of the Clones; Revenge of the Sith; Return of the Jedi)

These scenes are all from the canon films. (Attack of the Clones; Revenge of the Sith)

Frequently asked questions

Which hand did Anakin lose?: His right. Dooku cuts off his right arm on Geonosis, and from Attack of the Clones onward Anakin wears a mechanical right arm and hand, usually covered by a black glove.
Who cut off Anakin's arm?: Count Dooku, in the hangar duel at the end of Attack of the Clones, just before Yoda arrives to fight him. In Revenge of the Sith, Palpatine reminds Anakin of it when he urges him to kill Dooku.
How many limbs did Anakin lose?: All four. Dooku took his right arm on Geonosis, and Obi-Wan cut off both his legs and his left arm on Mustafar in Revenge of the Sith.
Did Luke lose the same hand as Anakin?: Yes. Vader cuts off Luke's right hand at Cloud City in The Empire Strikes Back, and Luke later cuts off Vader's mechanical right hand in Return of the Jedi.