Star Wars actor Anthony Daniels has paid tribute to co-star James Earl Jones after his death aged 93.
Jones, the voice of Darth Vader, passed away on September 9 at his home in Dutchess County, NY, his representatives confirmed on Monday.
Now Daniels, who played C3P0 in the original Star Wars films, has told how his colleague was ‘a lovely man’ who was ‘a real star’, and whose voice will always give Star Wars fans ‘goosebumps.’
Speaking on Times Radio on Tuesday, Daniels revealed how they first met in New York when he wasn’t filming for the sci-fi series.
Jones never appeared on screen when playing Darth Vader, as it was the former bodybuilder David Prowse who wore the iconic black suit.
Star Wars’ C3P0 actor Anthony Daniels broke his silence on James Earl Jones’ death on Tuesday as he paid tribute to ‘lovely man who played the baddest villain ever’
Jones, the voice of Darth Vader, passed away on September 9 at his home in Dutchess County, NY, his representatives confirmed on Monday
Daniels shared: ‘You’re listening to a completely different voice and script sometimes.
‘And curiously, it wasn’t until several years after that I first met James in New York. We were in a studio doing something completely different from each other. But he was very, very kind and helpful to me.
‘It’s great to be on the programme today to talk about him because what a lovely man (who) played the baddest villain ever. And (he) was the sweetest.
‘His grin was totally infectious and charming and he added so much.’
He went on to praise the star’s vocal skills, explaining: ‘People don’t realize the difficulty sometimes of voicing a part that isn’t you physically.’
Daniels added that he had tried many times to imitate Jones’ legendary Darth Vader voice but he confessed: ‘I can’t do it!
‘His chest, his vocal cords made that wonderful Darth Vader sound all right with a bit of sort of aqualung breathing done by Ben Burtt and the special effects. But really, the essence of Darth Vader was, is James Earl Jones.
‘He was a real star, not just in the films or in the movies, but also on stage, he did Driving Miss Daisy here in London.
‘Multi talented, just a very good actor, very sincere, could be quite daunting, but always very direct. And he never appeared to be acting, if you know what I mean.
‘And it’s not over. The millions of Star Wars fans around the world will always get goosebumps listening to his voice.’
Jones never appeared on screen when playing Darth Vader, as it was the former bodybuilder David Prowse who wore the iconic black suit
Jones was paid a mere $7000 for Star Wars but a string of commercials that followed ‘took good care of him’, he claimed.
Jones initially did not want to be credited for the film, as he felt his voiceovers were simply part of the movie’s special effects, but eventually conceded, and went on to voice the character in multiple films, television series and video games
He played Vader in Star Wars (1977), The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Return of the Jedi (1983) then again in the first installment of the Star Wars anthology series—Rogue One (2016), and the third installment of the sequel trilogy, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
‘I am your father,’ Vader tells Luke Skywalker, portrayed by Mark Hamill, in a pivotal fight scene in The Empire Strikes Back – a twist etched in cinema history.
Hamill took to X on Monday to pay tribute to Jones, writing: ‘RIP Dad’ – followed by a broken heart symbol.
‘He created, with very little dialogue, one of the greatest villains that ever lived,’ ‘Star Wars’ creator George Lucas said in 2015 at a ceremony honoring Jones in New York.
In September 2022, Jones announced that he would retire from the role of voicing Darth Vader with future voice roles for Vader being created with Respeecher using archive audio of Jones.
Jones is among an illustrious list of entertainers who achieved coveted EGOT status – winning two Primetime Emmy Awards, a Grammy Award and three Tony Awards and being presented with the Honorary Academy Award.
‘He created one of the greatest villains that ever lived,’ Star Wars’ creator George Lucas said in 2015 at a ceremony honoring Jones in New York (pictured together 2006)
Mark Hamill took to X on Monday to pay tribute to Jones, writing: ‘RIP Dad’ – followed by a broken heart symbol