James Earl Jones Got Into a Fight With George Lucas Over Darth Vader After Revealing He Was Paid $7000 in the First Star Wars Movie
- Despite his contribution as Darth Vader's voice, James Earl Jones was paid just $7,000 for his work.
- Jones and George Lucas had a disagreement over how Darth Vader should sound.
- Jones signed over his voice archive to a Ukrainian AI startup, allowing his voice to be preserved and used in the future.
In the world of entertainment, some characters are perceived beyond the screen and become a part of pop culture. Such characters become legends not only because of the way they look, but also because of their story and the actors who portrayed them.
The Star Wars franchise has given quite a number of such characters, and it is hard to argue anyone is more iconic than the dark Sith Lord, Darth Vader. Since the character remained masked for most of its arc, it became more important for its voice actor to keep up with demands, and James Earl Jones truly made him iconic with his voice.
George Lucas Disagreed With James Earl Jones Over Darth Vader’s Portrayal
Darth Vader is like a symbol of power and fear in the Star Wars universe. His appearance and actions were meant to strike terror into anyone who opposed his empire. David Prowse made the character iconic with his physical movements, and James Earl Jones gave it an unforgettable voice.
Jones’ deep voice added some more seriousness to the Sith Lord. However, despite his talent and role, Jones was paid just $7,000 for his voice work in the first Star Wars film. Talking about how he got to be Vader, Jones revealed in a 2009 interview with the American Film Institute,
George wanted, pardon the expression, a dark voice. So he hires a guy born in Mississippi, raised in Michigan, who stutters. And that’s the voice. That’s me… I lucked out, from all these so-called handicaps, for a job that paid $7,000! I thought that was good money. And I got to be a voice on a movie!
According to Parade, Mark Hamill earned around $650,000 for Star Wars: A New Hope, along with some shares from the profits. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Harrison Ford was paid $10,000 for his first appearance, which increased up to $500,000 by the third film.
Moreover, Jones and George Lucas got into a disagreement with Vader in The Empire Strikes Back. Jones wanted the Sith Lord to sound more subtle and “more psychologically oriented.” However, Lucas had already made up his mind by then. Talking about their disagreement, Jones said,
He (George Lucas) said, ‘We don’t know what we did right, so let’s just try what we did…What we’re finding out is you need to keep his voice on a very narrow band of inflection because he ain’t human, really.’
Jones’ modest payment is a stark contrast to the influence Darth Vader has had on pop culture and screens. Moreover, according to Comic Book Resources, Jones also refused to be credited for his role in the first two Star Wars movies, as he felt his contribution was insignificant.
James Earl Jones’ Voice Has Been Immortalized
The legendary actor recently passed away on September 9, 2024, at the age of 93. According to IMDb, Jones has worked on over 80 films in his career. Now, it becomes difficult for the audience to imagine and accept any other voice for the Sith Lord after such an iconic portrayal over decades.
Keeping this in mind, Jones had already decided to preserve his voice for future generations. According to Vanity Fair, he signed over his archive of voice work to a Ukrainian AI startup named Respeecher. This will allow Lucasfilm to use AI-generated reproductions of his voice.
In fact, Jones’s Vader voice in the Obi-Wan Kenobi series was completely AI-generated. Although there have been some debates over the use of AI voices of celebrities, it is also true that the person himself had already given the consent. Moreover, Respeecher CEO Alex Serdiuk told Techcrunch that they insist on their ethics-first approach.
Besides Darth Vader, Jones has voiced many other characters, like Mufasa in The Lion King. He was nominated for Oscars in 1970 for The Great White Hope and later won the honorary Oscar for Lifetime Achievement in 2011. From Broadway success to playing both dramatic and comedic roles in films and TV, Jones’ career resembles that of a complete artist.
The Star Wars movies and shows are available to stream on Disney+.
