James Earl Jones
Acting • Born 1931-01-17 – Died 2024-09-09
Biography
James 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.
Filmography
266 credits
Star Wars
Movie • 1977
Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
Movie • 1964
Lt. Lothar Zogg
Sommersby
Movie • 1993
Judge Barry Conrad Issacs
The Hunt for Red October
Movie • 1990
Vice ADM James Greer
Sneakers
Movie • 1992
Mr. Bernard Abbott
Field of Dreams
Movie • 1989
Terrence Mann
Return of the Jedi
Movie • 1983
Darth Vader (voice)
The Empire Strikes Back
Movie • 1980
Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)
Dreamrider
Movie • 1993
Bill Perry
Amy and the Angel
Movie • 1982
Gabriel
Earth
Movie • 2007
Narrator (voice)
Finder's Fee
Movie • 2001
Avery Phillips
By Dawn's Early Light
Movie • 1990
Alice
The Meteor Man
Movie • 1993
Earnest Moses
The Sandlot
Movie • 1993
Mr. Mertle
Excessive Force
Movie • 1993
Jake
Matewan
Movie • 1987
'Few Clothes' Johnson
Disney's American Legends
Movie • 2001
Narrator
Three Fugitives
Movie • 1989
Dugan
Quantum Quest: A Cassini Space Odyssey
Movie • 2010
Admiral (voice)
The Lion King
Movie • 1994
Mufasa (voice)
Soul Man
Movie • 1986
Professor Banks
Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold
Movie • 1986
Umslopogaas
The Lion King II: Simba's Pride
Movie • 1998
Mufasa (voice)
Clear and Present Danger
Movie • 1994
Admiral James Greer
Coming to America
Movie • 1988
King Jaffe Joffer
Conan the Barbarian
Movie • 1982
Thulsa Doom
Star Wars: The Magic & the Mystery
Movie • 1997
Self
The Flight of Dragons
Movie • 1982
Ommadon (voice)
Patriot Games
Movie • 1992
Adm. James Greer
Cry, the Beloved Country
Movie • 1995
Rev. Stephen Kumalo
Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins
Movie • 2008
Papa Jenkins
Africa: The Serengeti
Movie • 1994
Narrator
Gardens of Stone
Movie • 1987
Sgt. Maj.'Goody' Nelson
Gang Related
Movie • 1997
Arthur Baylor
Jack and the Beanstalk
Movie • 2009
The Giant (voice)
The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings
Movie • 1976
Leon
Swashbuckler
Movie • 1976
Nick Debrett
The Twilight Zone: Rod Serling's Lost Classics
Movie • 1994
Host
Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault
Movie • 1996
Dr. McDuffie
A Family Thing
Movie • 1996
Ray Murdock
A Piece of the Action
Movie • 1977
Joshua Burke
Undercover Angel
Movie • 1999
The Judge
Scorchers
Movie • 1991
Bear
Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night
Movie • 1987
Emperor of the Night (voice)
The Reading Room
Movie • 2005
William
The Sandlot 2
Movie • 2005
Mr. Mertle
Nine Dog Christmas
Movie • 2004
Storyteller (voice)
Grim Prairie Tales
Movie • 1990
Morrison
Clean Slate
Movie • 1994
John Dolby
Fantasia 2000
Movie • 2000
Self - Host
People: A Musical Celebration
Movie • 1995
The Storyteller (voice)
Timepiece
Movie • 1996
Lawrence
Who's in Rabbit's House?
Movie • 1995
Narrator (voice)
Convicts
Movie • 1991
Ben Johnson
Claudine
Movie • 1974
Rupert D. "Roop" Marshall
Feast of All Saints
Movie • 2001
Older Marcel
Santa and Pete
Movie • 1999
James Earl Jones
Deadly Hero
Movie • 1975
Rabbit Shazam
The Last Remake of Beau Geste
Movie • 1977
Sheikh
True Identity
Movie • 1991
James Earl Jones
The Star Wars Holiday Special
Movie • 1978
Darth Vader (voice)
The River Niger
Movie • 1976
Johnny Williams
On Broadway
Movie • 2019
Self (archive footage)
What the Deaf Man Heard
Movie • 1997
Archibald Thacker
The UFO Incident
Movie • 1975
Barney Hill
The Comedians
Movie • 1967
Dr. Magiot
Blood Tide
Movie • 1982
Frye
The Space: Theatre of Survival
Movie • 2019
Narrator
Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street
Movie • 2021
Self (archive footage)
The Ambulance
Movie • 1990
Lt. Spencer
Beauty and the Beast
Movie • 1981
Narrator (voice)
Summer's End
Movie • 1999
Dr. William 'Bill' Blakely
11-22-63: The Day the Nation Cried
Movie • 1989
Narrator
The Making of 'Jurassic Park'
Movie • 1995
Host
My Little Girl
Movie • 1986
Ike Bailey
Conan Unchained: The Making of 'Conan'
Movie • 2000
Self
End of the Road
Movie • 1970
Doctor D
The Angriest Man in Brooklyn
Movie • 2014
Ruben
The Bushido Blade
Movie • 1981
The Prisoner
The Great Year
Movie • 2003
Narrator
Gangs: Turning the Corner
Movie • 1994
Self
A House Divided
Movie • 1987
Black Indians: An American Story
Movie • 2004
Narrator
Joe Papp in Five Acts
Movie • 2012
Self
The Vegas Strip War
Movie • 1984
Jack Madrid
The Cay
Movie • 1974
Timothy
The Vernon Johns Story
Movie • 1994
Vernon Johns
The Man
Movie • 1972
Douglass Dilman
Gimme Shelter
Movie • 2013
Frank McCarthy
Best of the Best
Movie • 1989
Frank Couzo
The Creation
Movie • 1981
Narrator (voice)
The First 100 Years: A Celebration of American Movies
Movie • 1995
Self
The Great White Hope
Movie • 1970
Jack Jefferson
Waking Sleeping Beauty
Movie • 2009
Self (archive footage)
Looking for Richard
Movie • 1996
Self - Interviewee
Exorcist II: The Heretic
Movie • 1977
Older Kokumo
Michael Jackson: Dangerous - The Short Films
Movie • 1993
Self (voice) (uncredited)
The Hunting of the Snark
Movie • 1989
Narrator (voice)
Blackfish
Movie • 2013
Self (archive footage)
Sports on the Silver Screen
Movie • 1997
Self (archive footage)
The Second Civil War
Movie • 1997
Jim Kalla
Hitler's Forgotten Victims
Movie • 1997
Narrator (voice) (DVD version)
City Limits
Movie • 1985
Albert
Driving Miss Daisy
Movie • 2015
Hoke Colburn
Bah, Humbug!: The Story of Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol'
Movie • 1994
Narrator
Percy & Thunder
Movie • 1993
Percy Banks
By Any Means Necessary: The Making of 'Malcolm X'
Movie • 2005
Narrator
Heat Wave
Movie • 1990
Junius Johnson
Ivory Hunters
Movie • 1990
Inspector Nkuru
The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror
Movie • 2003
Maggie Simpson (voice)
Jefferson in Paris
Movie • 1995
Madison Hemings
The Greatest
Movie • 1977
Malcolm X
Martin Luther King, Jr.: Legacy of a Dream
Movie • 1971
Narrator
Our Friend, Martin
Movie • 1999
Daddy King (voice)
Alone
Movie • 1997
Grey
Stories to Remember: Noah's Ark
Movie • 1989
Narrator
Words from a Bear
Movie • 2019
Self
Michael Jackson: The Legend Continues
Movie • 1988
Narrator (voice)
Milius
Movie • 2013
Self
Star Wars Rebels: The Siege of Lothal
Movie • 2015
Darth Vader (voice)
Teach 109
Movie • 1990
Dr. Winston
Lincoln
Movie • 1992
Narrator (voice)
The Annihilation of Fish
Movie • 1999
Fish
Broadway: The Next Generation
Movie
Self
Last Flight Out
Movie • 1990
Al Topping
The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar
Movie • 2016
Mufasa (voice)
God Bless You, Mr Rosewater
Movie • 2016
Kilgore Trout
The Golden Moment: An Olympic Love Story
Movie • 1980
Dane Oliver
Star Wars Rebels: Spark of Rebellion
Movie • 2014
Darth Vader (voice)
Night of 100 Stars II
Movie • 1985
Self
Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy
Movie • 2004
Self
Golden Book Video - Beauty and the Beast
Movie • 1981
Narrator (voice)
Muhammad Ali - Through The Eyes Of The World
Movie • 2001
Self
Butterfly in the Sky
Movie • 2024
Guest Narrator (archive footage)
August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand
Movie • 2015
Self
King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis
Movie • 1970
Self (archive footage)
Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult
Movie • 1994
James Earl Jones (uncredited)
Confessions: Two Faces of Evil
Movie • 1994
Charles Lloyd
Malcolm X
Movie • 1972
Biographical Narration (voice)
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Movie • 2016
Darth Vader (voice)
Terrorgram
Movie • 1990
Retribution (voice)
Beneath the Surface: The Making of 'The Hunt for Red October'
Movie • 2003
Self
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
Movie • 2005
Darth Vader (voice - uncredited)
Afro Promo
Movie • 1997
Self (archive footage)
The Story of Star Wars
Movie • 2004
Darth Vader (archive footage)
Robots
Movie • 2005
Voice Box at Hardware Store (voice)
Muse of Fire
Movie • 2013
Self
The Lion King
Movie • 2019
Mufasa (voice)
The Greatest Thing That Almost Happened
Movie • 1977
Morris Bird, Jr.
Click
Movie • 2006
Narrator of Michael's Past (voice) (uncredited)
Warning Shot
Movie • 2018
Pendleton
The Making of Star Wars
Movie • 1977
Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)
Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp
Movie • 1986
Genie / Narrator
King Lear
Movie • 1974
King Lear
The Lion Guard: Life In The Pride Lands
Movie • 2017
Mufasa (voice)
Visitors from the Unknown
Movie • 1991
Narrator (voice)
The Lone Star Kid
Movie • 1986
Holmes
The Benchwarmers
Movie • 2006
Darth Vader (voice)
Judge Dredd
Movie • 1995
Narrator (uncredited)
On the Q.T.
Movie • 1999
Leo
John, Paul, George and Ben
Movie • 2007
Narrator
The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays
Movie • 2006
Jack Jefferson (segment "The Great White Hope") / Troy Maxson (segment "Fences")
God's Trombones
Movie • 1981
Narrator (voice)
Hollywood's Greatest Villains
Movie • 2005
Self
Visual Pathfinders: Robert Abel & Associates
Movie • 1985
Paul Robeson
Movie • 1979
Paul Robeson
Coming 2 America
Movie • 2021
King Jaffe Joffer
Raúl Juliá: The World’s a Stage
Movie • 2019
Self
Casper: A Spirited Beginning
Movie • 1997
Kibosh (voice)
No Fighting in the War Room Or: 'Dr Strangelove' and the Nuclear Threat
Movie • 2004
Self
Inside: 'Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb'
Movie • 2000
Self - 'Lieutenant Lothar Zogg'
The Art of Stanley Kubrick: From Short Films to Strangelove
Movie • 2000
Self
There Was Always Sun Shining Someplace: Life in the Negro Baseball Leagues
Movie • 1981
himself, voice
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
Movie • 2019
Darth Vader (voice)
Scary Movie 4
Movie • 2006
Narrator (uncredited)
The Me Nobody Knows
Movie • 1980
Self
Recess Christmas: Miracle On Third Street
Movie • 2001
Mister (voice)
Searching for Orson
Movie • 2006
Self
Black Theatre: The Making of a Movement
Movie • 1978
Self
An Amazing Time: A Conversation About End of the Road
Movie • 2012
Self
Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears
Movie • 1984
Narrator
Hallelujah
Movie • 1993
Old Man Taylor
Fredericksburg: A Documentary Film
Movie • 2002
Narrator
Antietam: A Documentary Film
Movie • 2000
Narrator
Our Paul: Remembering Paul Robeson
Movie • 2007
Self
Sidney Poitier: One Bright Light
Movie • 2000
The Making of the Lion King
Movie • 1994
Self
Portrait of Castro's Cuba
Movie • 1991
Host/Narrator
Night of 100 Stars
Movie • 1982
Self
A Walking Tour of Sesame Street
Movie • 1979
Self - Host
Primary Colors
Movie • 1998
CNN Voiceover (voice)
BET News & ET Present James Earl Jones: Life and Legacy
Movie • 2024
Self (archive footage)
Corwin
Movie • 1996
Self
When It Was a Game
Movie • 1991
(voice)
Moses
Movie • 1985
Pharaoh
Circle of Life: An Environmental Fable
Movie • 1995
Mufasa
Good Luck
Movie • 1997
James Bing
Strange Septembers: The Hill Abduction & the Exeter Encounter
Movie • 2011
Himself
The JFK Conspiracy
Movie • 1992
Self - Host
The Story of the Faithful Wookiee
Movie • 1978
Darth Vader (voice)
L.A. Law
TV • 1986
Lee Atkins
Sesame Street
TV • 1969
The Simpsons
TV • 1989
Narrator (voice)
Law & Order
TV • 1990
Defense Attorney Horace McCoy
House
TV • 2004
Dibala
Gabriel's Fire
TV • 1990
Gabriel Bird
The One Show
TV • 2006
Self - Guest
According to Jim
TV • 2001
Royal Flush Voice (voice)
Everwood
TV • 2002
Will Cleveland
Two and a Half Men
TV • 2003
James Earl Jones
Frasier
TV • 1993
Norman Royster
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman
TV • 1993
Franklin Stern
Stargate SG-1
TV • 1997
Unas (Voice)
Will & Grace
TV • 1998
James Earl Jones
Homicide: Life on the Street
TV • 1993
Felix Wilson
Hallmark Hall of Fame
TV • 1951
Archibald Thacker
Mathnet
TV • 1987
Chief Thad Green (voice)
Mathnet
TV • 1987
Chief Thad Green
East Side/West Side
TV • 1963
Under One Roof
TV • 1995
Neb Langston
Vegetable Soup
TV • 1975
Long John Spoilsport
The Defenders
TV • 1961
Lieutenant Andrews
Tarzan
TV • 1966
Roots: The Next Generations
TV • 1979
Alex Haley
Paris
TV • 1979
Woody Paris
The American Film Institute Salute to ...
TV • 1973
Self
Jesus of Nazareth
TV • 1977
Balthazar
Dr. Kildare
TV • 1961
Dr. Lou Rush
The Defenders
TV • 1961
Reverend Harris Bonham
The Kennedy Center Honors
TV • 1978
Self
Me & Mom
TV • 1985
Pros and Cons
TV • 1991
Gabriel Bird
Merlin
TV • 1998
Rock of Ages
The Big Bang Theory
TV • 2007
Self
Obi-Wan Kenobi
TV • 2022
Darth Vader (voice)
The Magic of David Copperfield
TV • 1978
Star Wars Rebels
TV • 2014
Darth Vader (voice)
Long Ago and Far Away
TV • 1989
Host
CBS Schoolbreak Special
TV • 1984
Detective Robb
Faerie Tale Theatre
TV • 1982
Genie / Narrator (voice)
Reading Rainbow
TV • 1983
Self - Narrator (voice)
Lamp Unto My Feet
TV • 1948
Signs and Wonders
TV • 1995
Diamond
The Atlanta Child Murders
TV • 1985
Major Walker
Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones
TV • 1980
Father Divine
The Simpsons
TV • 1989
Moving Man / Serak the Preparer / Narrator (voice)
The Simpsons
TV • 1989
Maggie Simpson (voice)
Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child
TV • 1995
King Dakkar (voice)
The Movies That Made Us
TV • 2019
Self (archive footage)
Black Omnibus
TV • 1973
Self - Host
Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories
TV • 1992
Narrator (voice)
The Dick Cavett Show
TV • 1968
Self - Guest
Touched by an Angel
TV • 1994
The Angel of Angels
Great Performances
TV • 1971
King Lear
3rd Rock from the Sun
TV • 1996
Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
Highway to Heaven
TV • 1984
Gabe Wilson
Dinah!
TV • 1974
Self
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
TV • 1962
Self
The Mike Douglas Show
TV • 1961
Self
The Mike Douglas Show
TV • 1961
Self - Co-Host
Golden Globe Awards
TV • 1944
Self - Nominee / Presenter
Mathnet
TV • 1987
Chief Thad Greene
The Merv Griffin Show
TV • 1962
Self
Garfield and Friends
TV • 1988
Diablo
Picket Fences
TV • 1992
Bryant Thomas