James Earl Jones’ 12 Greatest Roles, from ‘Star Wars’ to ‘The Hunt for Red October’ and ‘The Great White Hope’
When people talk about the late, great James Earl Jones, it’s a guarantee that one of the first things they’ll mention about him is that voice. It’s an inevitability, really, when anybody who was born after 1977 was likely first introduced to him not as a physical presence but as a sound booming from their screen — either filtered, steely, and imposing as the snarling vocals of Darth Vader in the original “Star Wars” trilogy, or warm, stately, and regal as the dialogue from Mufasa in Disney’s animated classic “The Lion King.”
But even in his live-action roles, Jones possessed a voice that could stop you in your tracks. Born in 1931 Mississippi and raised in Michigan, Jones had a childhood stutter so difficult that he claimed to barely speak before his first year of high school, where reciting poetry helped him to overcome the impediment. And when he did, he unlocked a powerful Basso profondo voice — deep and rich, gravelly and filled with conviction and authority — that lent an immediate air of gravity and sophistication to anything he said. Sometimes this could be amusingly subverted, like his late career kick as a breakdancing Verizon spokesperson, or when he voiced Maggie Simpson in an episode of “The Simpsons.” Most of the time, it was a tool in his arsenal that he could use to bring a scene to breathtaking life, adding menace or compassion to a character and a theatrical thrill to any project.
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Of course, Jones wasn’t just his voice. The actor had a power and intensity as an actor that revealed his years of stage experience before breaking through on the silver screen. While he’s best known today for his contributions to popular cinema — be it franchise work like “Star Wars,” comedies like “Coming to America,” or family classics like “The Sandlot” — Jones arguably did his best, most vital work in theater, making his Broadway debut 1957 and starring in Shakespeare plays (among them “Othello,” “Hamlet,” and “King Lear”), modern dramas, and comedies alike. He picked up two Tony Awards across his lifetime: one for 1968 boxing drama “The Great White Hope,” which he would reprise his role for in a film version that saw him receive an Oscar nomination, and as the originator of the part of Troy in August Wilson’s searing, legendary 1985 chamber drama “Fences.” Two Emmy Awards for miniseries “Heat Wave” and procedural “Gabriel’s Fire,” a Grammy for (of course!) a spoken word album, and a 2011 honorary Oscar made him one of the few EGOTs before his death.
All of Jones’ experience on stage showed. He wasn’t a performer who sank into a role as much as he elevated it, bringing commanding presence and deeply felt history to the men (and lions) that he played. Although his later years saw him play many an authority figure — mentors and side characters — in the ’70s and ’80s, he could take on parts that ranged from tormented boxers to carefree garbage men, and make them feel both grandly larger-than-life and still deeply human. Whether starring in a sci-fi epic or a small New York romantic drama, Jones brought something to his films no other actor was capable of.
In celebration of Jones’ life after his passing on September 9, IndieWire is revisiting the greatest, most remarkable screen performances from the icon. Entries are unranked, and instead listed in chronological order by film release date. Read on for 12 of James Earl Jones’ greatest performances.
With editorial contributions from Christian Blauvelt, Alison Foreman, Harrison Richlin, and Christian Zilko.
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