Why James Earl Jones Didn't Consider Voicing Darth Vader An Acting Role
The central villain of George Lucas' 1977 sci-fi flick "Star Wars" is a stern, steel-eyed military general named Grand Moff Tarkin (Peter Cushing). He is in command of a moon-sized structure called the Death Star which can destroy entire planets with a single, powerful laser blast. Like all the employees who work for the evil Empire, Tarkin is miserably unhappy. One might note that no Empire employees in any of the "Star Wars" films smile, laugh, or appear to enjoy their jobs. Joy is not in Tarkin's vocabulary.
Tarkin is a fine character and Cushing is an excellent actor, but, as a character, he was massively upstaged by his mysterious lieutenant, an evil mask-wearing, semi-robotic warlock named Darth Vader. The character, of course, warrants no description as you can buy toasters with his face on them to this very day. Because Darth Vader left such an impact on audiences, the many "Star Wars" sequels and prequels were reworked to highlight him. Darth Vader was played on set by David Prowse, a 6' 6" bodybuilder from Bristol, England. In post-production, however, George Lucas hired American actor James Earl Jones, armed with a velvety basso profundo voice, to provide Darth Vader's lines. Prowse has claimed he didn't know that his voice would be dubbed. Jones, meanwhile, was happy to provide his voice for Darth Vader but saw his contribution as more technical than creative. Indeed, Jones didn't even consider his voice acting to be acting.
In his 1993 autobiography, "James Earl Jones: Voices and Silences," Jones tells a story that he has likely told many times over about how he got the role and his approach to his performance. He elucidated on the story in the 2018 magazine compilation "Star Wars Insider: Icons of the Galaxy."
'Do you want a day's work?'
In his autobiography, Jones wrote that "It was fun" playing Darth Vader. "I used to tell people that the film's producers first called up Orson Welles, and he was busy, so they called up Victor Jory, and he was busy, so they called me." Victory Jory was a Canadian actor who played the role of Oberon in the 1935 film version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream," one of the very best of all Shakespeare film adaptations.
When pressed further, Jones recalled that playing Darth Vader was little more than a paycheck for him. He just needed a quick buck, and this George Lucas fellow had a little extra scratch to distribute. It was a casual quick job, and even Lucas seemed to think so. Jones said:
"After he put the film together, George Lucas decided that he wanted a voice in the bass register. I don't think that David Prowse is a bass. David also has a slight Scottish accent. So, George began to look for someone to do a voice-over. I understand that George did contact several actors to read for the voice of Darth Vader before he contacted me. I was out of work and he said 'Do you want a day's work?' and I said 'Sure.'"
Jones returned time and time again to play Darth Vader, a role he has voiced in six "Star Wars" movies and Lord knows how many video games, talking Hallmark ornaments, and other ancillary merch. He eventually came to love playing the character saying of the movies, "They were all a joy." And, it seems, a really easy way to make a lot of money.
David Prowse is Darth Vader
But when it came to creating a character, Jones gives all the credit to Prowse. For one, Prowse had to wear the mask and suit and provide all of the character's body language, something Jones would not have wanted to do. Prowse made the character physically intimidating, even while the actor's face was obscured. Jones felt he was merely there to "sweeten" another actor's performance, the same way a sound mixer might have been used to distort an actor's voice. Jones said:
"David Prowse worked very hard to create the character Darth Vader. He is Vader. I just consider myself to be special effects. That's how I approached it. I just sat there and had all the fun of playing my voice like an instrument."
Jones is an EGOT, having won a Lifetime Achievement Academy Award in 2011, three Tonys (including another Lifetime Achievement award) in 1969, 1987, and 2017, two Emmys in 1991, and a Grammy in 1977 for a spoken word album. He's one of the most cherished actors of still living (Jones 92) and has been celebrated throughout his decades-long career. He has a theater on Broadway named after him, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and an honorary Doctorate of Arts from Harvard.
Even if he had never appeared in "Star Wars," he would still be one of the most notable actors of his generation. He may like "Star Wars," but for Jones, Vader was a weekend FX gig, not an acting job.