James Earl Jones

Acting

The MovieWise Take

Refining cinematic analysis...

Biography

James Earl Jones (January 17, 1931 – September 9, 2024) was an American actor. He was described as "one of America's most distinguished and versatile" actors for his performances on stage and screen, and "one of the greatest actors in American history". Over his career, he received three Tony Awards, two Emmy Awards, and a Grammy Award. He was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 1985. He was honored with the National Medal of Arts in 1992, the Kennedy Center Honor in 2002, the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 2009 and the Honorary Academy Award in 2011. His deep voice has been praised as a "stirring basso profondo that has lent gravel and gravitas" to his projects.

Known For

Star Wars

Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)

The Lion King

Mufasa (voice)

The Empire Strikes Back

Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)

Return of the Jedi

Darth Vader (voice)

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Darth Vader (voice)

Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith

Darth Vader (voice - uncredited)

The Big Bang Theory

James Earl Jones

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Darth Vader (voice)

Full Filmography

Year	Title	Role
2024	BET News & ET Present James Earl Jones: Life and Legacy MOVIE	Self (archive footage)
2024	Butterfly in the Sky MOVIE	Guest Narrator (archive footage)
2022	Obi-Wan Kenobi TV	Darth Vader (voice)
2021	Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street MOVIE	Self (archive footage)
2021	Coming 2 America MOVIE	King Jaffe Joffer
2019	Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker MOVIE	Darth Vader (voice)
2019	The Movies That Made Us TV	Self (archive footage)
2019	On Broadway MOVIE	Self (archive footage)
2019	Raúl Juliá: The World’s a Stage MOVIE	Self
2019	The Lion King MOVIE	Mufasa (voice)
2019	The Space: Theatre of Survival MOVIE	Narrator
2019	Words from a Bear MOVIE	Self
2018	Warning Shot MOVIE	Pendleton
2017	The Lion Guard: Life In The Pride Lands MOVIE	Mufasa (voice)
2016	Rogue One: A Star Wars Story MOVIE	Darth Vader (voice)
2016	God Bless You, Mr Rosewater MOVIE	Kilgore Trout
2016	The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar MOVIE	Mufasa (voice)
2015	Driving Miss Daisy MOVIE	Hoke Colburn
2015	Star Wars Rebels: The Siege of Lothal MOVIE	Darth Vader (voice)
2015	August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand MOVIE	Self
2014	Star Wars Rebels TV	Darth Vader (voice)
2014	Star Wars Rebels: Spark of Rebellion MOVIE	Darth Vader (voice)
2014	The Angriest Man in Brooklyn MOVIE	Ruben
2013	Gimme Shelter MOVIE	Frank McCarthy
2013	Muse of Fire MOVIE	Self
2013	Blackfish MOVIE	Self (archive footage)
2013	Milius MOVIE	Self
2012	An Amazing Time: A Conversation About End of the Road MOVIE	Self
2012	Joe Papp in Five Acts MOVIE	Self
2011	Strange Septembers: The Hill Abduction & the Exeter Encounter MOVIE	Himself
2010	Quantum Quest: A Cassini Space Odyssey MOVIE	Admiral (voice)
2009	Jack and the Beanstalk MOVIE	The Giant (voice)
2009	Waking Sleeping Beauty MOVIE	Self (archive footage)
2008	Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins MOVIE	Papa Jenkins
2007	Earth MOVIE	Narrator (voice)
2007	The Big Bang Theory TV	James Earl Jones
2007	Our Paul: Remembering Paul Robeson MOVIE	Self
2007	John, Paul, George and Ben MOVIE	Narrator
2006	Searching for Orson MOVIE	Self
2006	The One Show TV	Self - Guest
2006	Click MOVIE	Narrator of Michael's Past (voice) (uncredited)
2006	The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays MOVIE	Jack Jefferson (segment "The Great White Hope") / Troy Maxson (segment "Fences")
2006	Scary Movie 4 MOVIE	Narrator (uncredited)
2006	The Benchwarmers MOVIE	Darth Vader (voice)
2005	Hollywood's Greatest Villains MOVIE	Self
2005	The Sandlot 2 MOVIE	Mr. Mertle
2005	The Reading Room MOVIE	William
2005	Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith MOVIE	Darth Vader (voice - uncredited)
2005	Robots MOVIE	Voice Box at Hardware Store (voice)
2005	By Any Means Necessary: The Making of 'Malcolm X' MOVIE	Narrator
2004	House TV	Dibala
2004	No Fighting in the War Room Or: 'Dr Strangelove' and the Nuclear Threat MOVIE	Self
2004	Nine Dog Christmas MOVIE	Storyteller (voice)
2004	Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy MOVIE	Self
2004	The Story of Star Wars MOVIE	Darth Vader (archive footage)
2004	Black Indians: An American Story MOVIE	Narrator
2003	The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror MOVIE	Maggie Simpson (voice)
2003	Two and a Half Men TV	James Earl Jones
2003	The Great Year MOVIE	Narrator
2003	Beneath the Surface: The Making of 'The Hunt for Red October' MOVIE	Self
2002	Everwood TV	Will Cleveland
2002	Fredericksburg: A Documentary Film MOVIE	Narrator
2001	Muhammad Ali - Through The Eyes Of The World MOVIE	Self
2001	Feast of All Saints MOVIE	Older Marcel
2001	Recess Christmas: Miracle On Third Street MOVIE	Mister (voice)
2001	According to Jim TV	Royal Flush Voice (voice)
2001	Finder's Fee MOVIE	Avery Phillips
2001	Disney's American Legends MOVIE	Narrator
2000	Antietam: A Documentary Film MOVIE	Narrator
2000	Conan Unchained: The Making of 'Conan' MOVIE	Self
2000	Inside: 'Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb' MOVIE	Self - 'Lieutenant Lothar Zogg'
2000	The Art of Stanley Kubrick: From Short Films to Strangelove MOVIE	Self
2000	Sidney Poitier: One Bright Light MOVIE	Self
2000	Fantasia 2000 MOVIE	Self - Host
1999	Santa and Pete MOVIE	Grandpa Nicholas
1999	The Annihilation of Fish MOVIE	Fish
1999	Undercover Angel MOVIE	The Judge
1999	On the Q.T. MOVIE	Leo
1999	Summer's End MOVIE	Dr. William 'Bill' Blakely
1999	Our Friend, Martin MOVIE	Daddy King (voice)
1998	The Lion King II: Simba's Pride MOVIE	Mufasa (voice)
1998	Will & Grace TV	James Earl Jones
1998	Merlin TV	Rock of Ages
1998	Primary Colors MOVIE	CNN Voiceover (voice)
1997	Alone MOVIE	Grey
1997	The Second Civil War MOVIE	Jim Kalla
1997	What the Deaf Man Heard MOVIE	Archibald Thacker
1997	Gang Related MOVIE	Arthur Baylor
1997	Hitler's Forgotten Victims MOVIE	Narrator (voice) (DVD version)
1997	Casper: A Spirited Beginning MOVIE	Kibosh (voice)
1997	Stargate SG-1 TV	Unas (Voice)
1997	Sports on the Silver Screen MOVIE	Self (archive footage)
1997	Good Luck MOVIE	James Bing
1997	Star Wars: The Magic & the Mystery MOVIE	Self
1997	Afro Promo MOVIE	Self (archive footage)
1996	Timepiece MOVIE	Lawrence
1996	Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault MOVIE	Dr. McDuffie
1996	Looking for Richard MOVIE	Self - Interviewee
1996	Corwin MOVIE	Self
1996	A Family Thing MOVIE	Ray Murdock
1996	3rd Rock from the Sun TV	Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
1995	Cry, the Beloved Country MOVIE	Rev. Stephen Kumalo
1995	Who's in Rabbit's House? MOVIE	Narrator (voice)
1995	Judge Dredd MOVIE	Narrator (uncredited)
1995	The First 100 Years: A Celebration of American Movies MOVIE	Self
1995	The Making of 'Jurassic Park' MOVIE	Host
1995	Jefferson in Paris MOVIE	Madison Hemings
1995	Under One Roof TV	Neb Langston
1995	Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child TV	King Dakkar (voice)
1995	Circle of Life: An Environmental Fable MOVIE	Mufasa
1995	Signs and Wonders TV	Diamond
1995	People: A Musical Celebration MOVIE	The Storyteller (voice)
1994	Bah, Humbug!: The Story of Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol' MOVIE	Narrator
1994	Touched by an Angel TV	The Angel of Angels
1994	Clear and Present Danger MOVIE	Admiral James Greer
1994	The Making of the Lion King MOVIE	Self
1994	The Lion King MOVIE	Mufasa (voice)
1994	The Twilight Zone: Rod Serling's Lost Classics MOVIE	Host
1994	Clean Slate MOVIE	John Dolby
1994	Africa: The Serengeti MOVIE	Narrator
1994	Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult MOVIE	James Earl Jones (uncredited)
1994	Gangs: Turning the Corner MOVIE	Self
1994	Confessions: Two Faces of Evil MOVIE	Charles Lloyd
1994	The Vernon Johns Story MOVIE	Vernon Johns
1993	Hallelujah MOVIE	Old Man Taylor
1993	Michael Jackson: Dangerous - The Short Films MOVIE	Self (voice) (uncredited)
1993	Frasier TV	Norman Royster
1993	Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman TV	Franklin Stern
1993	Percy & Thunder MOVIE	Percy Banks
1993	The Meteor Man MOVIE	Earnest Moses
1993	Dreamrider MOVIE	Bill Perry
1993	Excessive Force MOVIE	Jake
1993	The Sandlot MOVIE	Mr. Mertle
1993	Sommersby MOVIE	Judge Barry Conrad Issacs
1993	Homicide: Life on the Street TV	Felix Wilson
1992	Lincoln MOVIE	Narrator (voice)
1992	Picket Fences TV	Bryant Thomas
1992	Sneakers MOVIE	Mr. Bernard Abbott
1992	Patriot Games MOVIE	Adm. James Greer
1992	Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories TV	Narrator (voice)
1992	The JFK Conspiracy MOVIE	Self - Host
1991	Pros and Cons TV	Gabriel Bird
1991	True Identity MOVIE	James Earl Jones
1991	When It Was a Game MOVIE	(voice)
1991	Scorchers MOVIE	Bear
1991	Portrait of Castro's Cuba MOVIE	Host/Narrator
1991	Visitors from the Unknown MOVIE	Narrator (voice)
1991	Convicts MOVIE	Ben Johnson
1990	Grim Prairie Tales MOVIE	Morrison
1990	Law & Order TV	Defense Attorney Horace McCoy
1990	Gabriel's Fire TV	Gabriel Bird
1990	Ivory Hunters MOVIE	Inspector Nkuru
1990	Heat Wave MOVIE	Junius Johnson
1990	Last Flight Out MOVIE	Al Topping
1990	By Dawn's Early Light MOVIE	Alice
1990	The Ambulance MOVIE	Lt. Spencer
1990	The Hunt for Red October MOVIE	Vice ADM James Greer
1990	Teach 109 MOVIE	Dr. Winston
1990	Terrorgram MOVIE	Retribution (voice)
1989	The Simpsons TV	Narrator (voice)
1989	The Simpsons TV	Moving Man / Serak the Preparer / Narrator (voice)
1989	The Simpsons TV	Maggie Simpson (voice)
1989	11-22-63: The Day the Nation Cried MOVIE	Narrator
1989	Best of the Best MOVIE	Frank Couzo
1989	Field of Dreams MOVIE	Terrence Mann
1989	Long Ago and Far Away TV	Host
1989	Three Fugitives MOVIE	Dugan
1989	The Hunting of the Snark MOVIE	Narrator (voice)
1989	Stories to Remember: Noah's Ark MOVIE	Narrator
1988	Garfield and Friends TV	Diablo
1988	Coming to America MOVIE	King Jaffe Joffer
1988	Michael Jackson: The Legend Continues MOVIE	Narrator (voice)
1987	Matewan MOVIE	'Few Clothes' Johnson
1987	Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night MOVIE	Emperor of the Night (voice)
1987	Gardens of Stone MOVIE	Sgt. Maj.'Goody' Nelson
1987	A House Divided MOVIE	Self
1987	Mathnet TV	Chief Thad Green
1987	Mathnet TV	Chief Thad Green (voice)
1987	Mathnet TV	Chief Thad Greene
1986	Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold MOVIE	Umslopogaas
1986	Soul Man MOVIE	Professor Banks
1986	L.A. Law TV	Lee Atkins
1986	My Little Girl MOVIE	Ike Bailey
1986	Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp MOVIE	Genie / Narrator
1986	The Lone Star Kid MOVIE	Holmes
1985	Moses MOVIE	Pharaoh
1985	City Limits MOVIE	Albert
1985	Me & Mom TV	Self
1985	Night of 100 Stars II MOVIE	Self
1985	The Atlanta Child Murders TV	Major Walker
1985	Visual Pathfinders: Robert Abel & Associates MOVIE	Self
1984	The Vegas Strip War MOVIE	Jack Madrid
1984	Highway to Heaven TV	Gabe Wilson
1984	CBS Schoolbreak Special TV	Detective Robb
1984	Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears MOVIE	Narrator
1983	Reading Rainbow TV	Self - Narrator (voice)
1983	Return of the Jedi MOVIE	Darth Vader (voice)
1982	Blood Tide MOVIE	Frye
1982	Amy and the Angel MOVIE	Gabriel
1982	Faerie Tale Theatre TV	Genie / Narrator (voice)
1982	The Flight of Dragons MOVIE	Ommadon (voice)
1982	Conan the Barbarian MOVIE	Thulsa Doom
1982	Night of 100 Stars MOVIE	Self
1981	Golden Book Video - Beauty and the Beast MOVIE	Narrator (voice)
1981	The Creation MOVIE	Narrator (voice)
1981	The Bushido Blade MOVIE	The Prisoner
1981	There Was Always Sun Shining Someplace: Life in the Negro Baseball Leagues MOVIE	himself, voice
1981	Beauty and the Beast MOVIE	Narrator (voice)
1981	God's Trombones MOVIE	Narrator (voice)
1980	The Golden Moment: An Olympic Love Story MOVIE	Dane Oliver
1980	The Empire Strikes Back MOVIE	Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)
1980	The Me Nobody Knows MOVIE	Self
1980	Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones TV	Father Divine
1979	Paris TV	Woody Paris
1979	A Walking Tour of Sesame Street MOVIE	Self - Host
1979	Roots: The Next Generations TV	Alex Haley
1979	Paul Robeson MOVIE	Paul Robeson
1978	Black Theatre: The Making of a Movement MOVIE	Self
1978	The Kennedy Center Honors TV	Self
1978	The Star Wars Holiday Special MOVIE	Darth Vader (voice)
1978	The Magic of David Copperfield TV	Self
1977	The Greatest Thing That Almost Happened MOVIE	Morris Bird, Jr.
1977	A Piece of the Action MOVIE	Joshua Burke
1977	The Making of Star Wars MOVIE	Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)
1977	Exorcist II: The Heretic MOVIE	Older Kokumo
1977	The Last Remake of Beau Geste MOVIE	Sheikh
1977	Star Wars MOVIE	Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)
1977	The Greatest MOVIE	Malcolm X
1977	Jesus of Nazareth TV	Balthazar
1976	Swashbuckler MOVIE	Nick Debrett
1976	The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings MOVIE	Leon
1976	The River Niger MOVIE	Johnny Williams
1975	Deadly Hero MOVIE	Rabbit Shazam
1975	The UFO Incident MOVIE	Barney Hill
1975	Vegetable Soup TV	Long John Spoilsport
1974	The Cay MOVIE	Timothy
1974	Dinah! TV	Self
1974	Claudine MOVIE	Rupert D. "Roop" Marshall
1974	King Lear MOVIE	King Lear
1973	The American Film Institute Salute to ... TV	Self
1973	Black Omnibus TV	Self - Host
1972	The Man MOVIE	Douglass Dilman
1972	Malcolm X MOVIE	Biographical Narration (voice)
1971	Martin Luther King, Jr.: Legacy of a Dream MOVIE	Narrator
1971	Great Performances TV	King Lear
1970	The Great White Hope MOVIE	Jack Jefferson
1970	King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis MOVIE	Self (archive footage)
1970	End of the Road MOVIE	Doctor D
1969	Sesame Street TV	Self
1968	The Dick Cavett Show TV	Self - Guest
1967	The Comedians MOVIE	Dr. Magiot
1966	Tarzan TV	Self
1964	Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb MOVIE	Lt. Lothar Zogg
1963	East Side/West Side TV	Self
1962	The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson TV	Self
1962	The Merv Griffin Show TV	Self
1961	The Mike Douglas Show TV	Self
1961	The Mike Douglas Show TV	Self - Co-Host
1961	Dr. Kildare TV	Dr. Lou Rush
1961	The Defenders TV	Lieutenant Andrews
1961	The Defenders TV	Reverend Harris Bonham
1956	Tony Awards TV	Self - Winner / Performer
1956	Tony Awards TV	Self - Presenter
1956	Tony Awards TV	Self (archive footage)
1956	Tony Awards TV	Self - Nominee / Presenter
1956	Tony Awards TV	Self - Nominee
1956	Tony Awards TV	Self - Winner
1951	Hallmark Hall of Fame TV	Archibald Thacker
1948	Lamp Unto My Feet TV	Self
1944	Golden Globe Awards TV	Self - Nominee / Presenter
	Broadway: The Next Generation MOVIE	Self

Quick Facts

James Earl Jones

The MovieWise Take

Biography

Known For

Full Filmography

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