A true icon of Star Wars has decided that it is time to move on from the franchise and one of the most iconic characters in cinematic history. James Earl Jones, age 91, will no longer be the voice of Darth Vader in Star Wars.
This news comes from Vanity Fair, and along with the announcement of Jone’s retirement, they also announced that all voice work for Vader will be handled by Respeecher, a Ukrainian AI start-up that uses archival recording to create new dialogue for characters. They have worked with Lucasfilm in the past, most notably on The Book of Boba Fett to re-create the voice of young Luke Skywalker and Obi Wan Kenobi to re-create Vader’s voice.
While Jones will no longer be the voice of Vader, Lucasfilm and Respeecher have committed to working with Jones on any future plans for Vader and the dialogue that may come from it. There are no confirmations on Vader’s future in Star Wars, but there has been plenty of speculation that we could see him again in the upcoming Ahsoka series or the second season of Andor.
