James Earl Jones
Actor · CrewJames 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.
More details at TMDB
KNOWN FOR
FILMOGRAPHY
ACTOR202
Indiana Jones Adventure | Disneyland Resort
2025
Mara (voice)
Butterfly in the Sky
2024
Guest Narrator (archive footage)
BET News & ET Present James Earl Jones: Life and Legacy
2024
Self (archive footage)
Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street
2021
Self (archive footage)
Coming 2 America
2021
King Jaffe Joffer
On Broadway
2019
Self (archive footage)
The Space: Theatre of Survival
2019
Narrator
Words from a Bear
2019
Self
The Lion King
2019
Mufasa (voice)
Raúl Juliá: The World’s a Stage
2019
Self
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
2019
Darth Vader (voice)
Warning Shot
2018
Pendleton
The Lion Guard: Life In The Pride Lands
2017
Mufasa (voice)
The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar
2016
Mufasa (voice)
God Bless You, Mr Rosewater
2016
Kilgore Trout
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
2016
Darth Vader (voice)
Driving Miss Daisy
2015
Hoke Colburn
Star Wars Rebels: The Siege of Lothal
2015
Darth Vader (voice)
August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand
2015
Self
The Angriest Man in Brooklyn
2014
Ruben
Star Wars Rebels: Spark of Rebellion
2014
Darth Vader (voice)
Gimme Shelter
2013
Frank McCarthy
Blackfish
2013
Self (archive footage)
Milius
2013
Self
Muse of Fire
2013
Self
Joe Papp in Five Acts
2012
Self
An Amazing Time: A Conversation About End of the Road
2012
Self
Strange Septembers: The Hill Abduction & the Exeter Encounter
2011
Himself
Quantum Quest: A Cassini Space Odyssey
2010
Admiral (voice)
Jack and the Beanstalk
2009
The Giant (voice)
Waking Sleeping Beauty
2009
Self (archive footage)
Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins
2008
Papa Jenkins
Earth
2007
Narrator (voice)
John, Paul, George and Ben
2007
Narrator
- Our Paul: Remembering Paul Robeson
Our Paul: Remembering Paul Robeson
2007
Self
Click
2006
Narrator of Michael's Past (voice) (uncredited)
The Benchwarmers
2006
Darth Vader (voice)
The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays
2006
Jack Jefferson (segment "The Great White Hope") / Troy Maxson (segment "Fences")
Scary Movie 4
2006
Narrator (uncredited)
Searching for Orson
2006
Self
The Trail Of Tears: Cherokee Legacy
2006
Narrator
The Reading Room
2005
William
The Sandlot 2
2005
Mr. Mertle
By Any Means Necessary: The Making of 'Malcolm X'
2005
Narrator
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
2005
Darth Vader (voice - uncredited)
Robots
2005
Voice Box at Hardware Store (voice)
Hollywood's Greatest Villains
2005
Self
Nine Dog Christmas
2004
Storyteller (voice)
Black Indians: An American Story
2004
Narrator
Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy
2004
Self
The Story of Star Wars
2004
Darth Vader (archive footage)
No Fighting in the War Room Or: 'Dr Strangelove' and the Nuclear Threat
2004
Self
The Great Year
2003
Narrator
The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror
2003
Maggie Simpson (voice)
Beneath the Surface: The Making of 'The Hunt for Red October'
2003
Self
Fredericksburg: A Documentary Film
2002
Narrator
Finder's Fee
2001
Avery Phillips
Disney's American Legends
2001
Narrator
Feast of All Saints
2001
Older Marcel
Muhammad Ali - Through The Eyes Of The World
2001
Self
Recess Christmas: Miracle On Third Street
2001
Mister (voice)
Fantasia 2000
2000
Self - Host
Conan Unchained: The Making of 'Conan'
2000
Self
Inside: 'Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb'
2000
Self - 'Lieutenant Lothar Zogg'
The Art of Stanley Kubrick: From Short Films to Strangelove
2000
Self
Antietam: A Documentary Film
2000
Narrator
Sidney Poitier: One Bright Light
2000
Undercover Angel
1999
The Judge
Santa and Pete
1999
Grandpa Nicholas
Summer's End
1999
Dr. William 'Bill' Blakely
Our Friend, Martin
1999
Daddy King (voice)
The Annihilation of Fish
1999
Fish
On the Q.T.
1999
Leo
The Lion King II: Simba's Pride
1998
Mufasa (voice)
Primary Colors
1998
CNN Voiceover (voice)
Star Wars: The Magic & the Mystery
1997
Self
Gang Related
1997
Arthur Baylor
What the Deaf Man Heard
1997
Archibald Thacker
Sports on the Silver Screen
1997
Self (archive footage)
The Second Civil War
1997
Jim Kalla
- Hitler's Forgotten Victims
Hitler's Forgotten Victims
1997
Narrator (voice) (DVD version)
Alone
1997
Grey
Afro Promo
1997
Self (archive footage)
Casper: A Spirited Beginning
1997
Kibosh (voice)
Good Luck
1997
James Bing
Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault
1996
Dr. McDuffie
A Family Thing
1996
Ray Murdock
Timepiece
1996
Lawrence
Looking for Richard
1996
Self - Interviewee
- Corwin
Corwin
1996
Self
Cry, the Beloved Country
1995
Rev. Stephen Kumalo
People: A Musical Celebration
1995
The Storyteller (voice)
Who's in Rabbit's House?
1995
Narrator (voice)
The Making of 'Jurassic Park'
1995
Host
The First 100 Years: A Celebration of American Movies
1995
Self
Jefferson in Paris
1995
Madison Hemings
Judge Dredd
1995
Narrator (uncredited)
Circle of Life: An Environmental Fable
1995
Mufasa
The Lion King
1994
Mufasa (voice)
Clear and Present Danger
1994
Admiral James Greer
Africa: The Serengeti
1994
Narrator
The Twilight Zone: Rod Serling's Lost Classics
1994
Host
Clean Slate
1994
John Dolby
Gangs: Turning the Corner
1994
Self
The Vernon Johns Story
1994
Vernon Johns
- Bah, Humbug!: The Story of Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol'
Bah, Humbug!: The Story of Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol'
1994
Narrator
Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult
1994
James Earl Jones (uncredited)
Confessions: Two Faces of Evil
1994
Charles Lloyd
The Making of the Lion King
1994
Self
Sommersby
1993
Judge Barry Conrad Issacs
Dreamrider
1993
Bill Perry
The Meteor Man
1993
Earnest Moses
The Sandlot
1993
Mr. Mertle
Excessive Force
1993
Jake
Michael Jackson: Dangerous - The Short Films
1993
Self (voice) (uncredited)
Percy & Thunder
1993
Percy Banks
- Hallelujah
Hallelujah
1993
Old Man Taylor
Sneakers
1992
Mr. Bernard Abbott
Patriot Games
1992
Adm. James Greer
- Lincoln
Lincoln
1992
Narrator (voice)
The JFK Conspiracy
1992
Self - Host
Scorchers
1991
Bear
Convicts
1991
Ben Johnson
True Identity
1991
James Earl Jones
Visitors from the Unknown
1991
Narrator (voice)
- Portrait of Castro's Cuba
Portrait of Castro's Cuba
1991
Host/Narrator
When It Was a Game
1991
(voice)
The Hunt for Red October
1990
Vice ADM James Greer
By Dawn's Early Light
1990
Alice
Grim Prairie Tales
1990
Morrison
The Ambulance
1990
Lt. Spencer
Heat Wave
1990
Junius Johnson
Ivory Hunters
1990
Inspector Nkuru
Teach 109
1990
Dr. Winston
- Last Flight Out
Last Flight Out
1990
Al Topping
Terrorgram
1990
Retribution (voice)
Field of Dreams
1989
Terrence Mann
Three Fugitives
1989
Dugan
11-22-63: The Day the Nation Cried
1989
Narrator
Best of the Best
1989
Frank Couzo
The Hunting of the Snark
1989
Narrator (voice)
Stories to Remember: Noah's Ark
1989
Narrator
Coming to America
1988
King Jaffe Joffer
Michael Jackson: The Legend Continues
1988
Narrator (voice)
Matewan
1987
'Few Clothes' Johnson
Gardens of Stone
1987
Sgt. Maj.'Goody' Nelson
Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night
1987
Emperor of the Night (voice)
- A House Divided
A House Divided
1987
Soul Man
1986
Professor Banks
Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold
1986
Umslopogaas
My Little Girl
1986
Ike Bailey
Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp
1986
Genie / Narrator
The Lone Star Kid
1986
Holmes
City Limits
1985
Albert
Night of 100 Stars II
1985
Self
Visual Pathfinders: Robert Abel & Associates
1985
- Moses
Moses
1985
Pharaoh
The Vegas Strip War
1984
Jack Madrid
Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears
1984
Narrator
Return of the Jedi
1983
Darth Vader (voice)
Amy and the Angel
1982
Gabriel
Conan the Barbarian
1982
Thulsa Doom
The Flight of Dragons
1982
Ommadon (voice)
Blood Tide
1982
Frye
Night of 100 Stars
1982
Self
- Beauty and the Beast
Beauty and the Beast
1981
Narrator (voice)
The Bushido Blade
1981
The Prisoner
- The Creation
The Creation
1981
Narrator (voice)
Golden Book Video - Beauty and the Beast
1981
Narrator (voice)
God's Trombones
1981
Narrator (voice)
There Was Always Sun Shining Someplace: Life in the Negro Baseball Leagues
1981
himself, voice
The Empire Strikes Back
1980
Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)
The Golden Moment: An Olympic Love Story
1980
Dane Oliver
The Me Nobody Knows
1980
Self
Paul Robeson
1979
Paul Robeson
A Walking Tour of Sesame Street
1979
Self - Host
The Star Wars Holiday Special
1978
Darth Vader (voice)
Black Theatre: The Making of a Movement
1978
Self
Star Wars
1977
Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)
A Piece of the Action
1977
Joshua Burke
The Last Remake of Beau Geste
1977
Sheikh
Exorcist II: The Heretic
1977
Older Kokumo
The Greatest
1977
Malcolm X
The Greatest Thing That Almost Happened
1977
Morris Bird, Jr.
The Making of Star Wars
1977
Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)
The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings
1976
Leon
Swashbuckler
1976
Nick Debrett
The River Niger
1976
Johnny Williams
Deadly Hero
1975
Rabbit Shazam
The UFO Incident
1975
Barney Hill
Claudine
1974
Rupert D. "Roop" Marshall
The Cay
1974
Timothy
King Lear
1974
King Lear
The Man
1972
Douglass Dilman
Malcolm X
1972
Biographical Narration (voice)
Martin Luther King, Jr.: Legacy of a Dream
1971
Narrator
End of the Road
1970
Doctor D
The Great White Hope
1970
Jack Jefferson
King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis
1970
Self (archive footage)
The Comedians
1967
Dr. Magiot
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
1964
Lt. Lothar Zogg
Broadway: The Next Generation
Self
