Max Page, 'Little Darth Vader' in Volkswagen commercial, to have open-heart surgery, Today Show says

The boy who played a miniature Darth Vader in a popular Super Bowl commercial will undergo open-heart surgery in Los Angeles today to repair a congenital heart defect, the Today Show reported.

Max Page, 7, played Darth Vader in a 2011 Volkswagen commercial. According to the Today Show, the goal of the surgery is to repair a hole in his heart and replace his pulmonary valve.

Max originally appeared on the Today Show in February of 2011 when the ad became a viral hit.

Max was diagnosed with the heart defect when he was only a few months old, according to his mother, who spoke exclusively with the Today Show.

Here is an excerpt from the Today Show interview with Max's mom:

“We told Max and Els [Max's brother] Sunday afternoon. Initially, Max was crying and repeating how scared he was. We unpeeled the layers by asking what exactly he was afraid of and tackled each issue as he could verbalize it. Blood draws, spending the night in the hospital and hurting are the big three. He was also very sad that summer would be in rest in recovery instead of playing baseball, golf and traveling."\

Here's Max's commercial from 2011: