James Earl Jones, Actor and Voice of Darth Vader, Dies at 93 (original) (raw)

James Earl Jones, the actor and voice behind __Star Wars_’ Darth Vader, has died. He was 93.

Born on Jan. 17, 1931, Jones would become an acclaimed actor, making his big-screen debut in the 1964 Stanley Kubrick film, _Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.

But Jones is arguably best known for being the voice of Darth Vader, the antagonist in the original _Star Wars trilogy.

In a 1995 interview on _Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Jones shared how he ended up with the role.

“When Lucas put the film together, he realized he wanted a darker voice, or a bass voice,” the actor said. “So he called around — I think he thought of Orson Welles first and then realized that he might be too recognizable. So, he picks a kid that comes from Mississippi who stutters and [was] raised in Michigan — me.”

In a 2009 interview with the American Film Institute, he also offered some insight into how he wanted to approach the character’s voice — and how that led to disagreements with _Star Wars creator George Lucas.

“I wanted to make Darth Vader more interesting, more subtle, more psychologically-oriented,” Jones said. “[Lucas] said, ‘No, no. What we’re finding out is — you got to keep his voice on a very narrow band of inflection, ‘cause he ain’t human, really.’”

That Jones struggled with a severe stutter as a child only to become such an accomplished and beloved actor is a testament to his legacy. Along with _Star Wars, he served as the voice of __The Lion King_’s Mufasa, as well as starred in films like _The Sandlot and _Claudine. He was also a Broadway actor, appearing in plays like _Othello and _Of Mice and Men.

Ultimately, Jones’ career resulted in him being a recipient of the EGOT. He is one of several entertainers to be a non-competitive EGOT winner, meaning he won each of the four major awards — Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony — with one of those being an honorary award (his Oscar from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences).

Following news of his passing, a number of people have shared tributes to Jones, including Colman Domingo, LeVar Burton, Mark Hamill and Lucas.

“James was an incredible actor, a most unique voice both in art and spirit,” the latter said in a statement shared on the _Star Wars website. “For nearly half a century he was Darth Vader, but the secret to it all is he was a beautiful human being. He gave depth, sincerity and meaning to all his roles, amongst the most important being a devoted husband to the late Ceci and dad to Flynn. James will be missed by so many of us...friends and fans alike.”