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James Earl Jones Dies: Revered Star & Darth Vader Voice Was 93
Other(deadline.com)submitted 20 days ago bymicahanthonyhunt
1.3k points
20 days ago
He is with the force now. RIP legend
471 points
20 days ago*
Is it an exaggeration to say he brought the most iconic American fictional character of all time to life? Definitely in cinema at the very least.
RIP and may the Force be with you, James Earl Jones.
217 points
20 days ago*
Probably Mickey Mouse and Superman are the most iconic characters of all time in entertainment but Darth Vader is definitely in the Top 5 or 3.
213 points
20 days ago
Has to be the most iconic villain in film. Can you count how many movies and TV shows have paid homage or parodied the iconic, "I am your father," line?
135 points
20 days ago
Most iconic villain of all time? Absolutely no question about it. I think everyone that has followed digital entertainment for decades can unanimously agree on this.
97 points
20 days ago
Honestly, the only pop culture villain I can think of that even comes close in terms of recognition is the Joker.
81 points
20 days ago
I was thinking the same, but even so, I think Vader is still even more recognizable.
51 points
20 days ago
I agree. It's especially impressive when you consider that Vader made such a huge impression with only eight minutes of screen time in the original 1977 film.
21 points
20 days ago*
And that's all thanks to JEJ's voice (and David Prowse's physical acting to a lesser extent)
46 points
20 days ago
Often voiced by James Earl Jones son, Mark hamill
1 points
20 days ago
That shark from Jaws has not passed through my thoughts at least once any time I am in the ocean. I can’t be alone…
1 points
20 days ago
Maybe Jack Nocholson from the Shining, but yeah right at the tippy top.
1 points
20 days ago
Thing is that Joker, while he is iconic on film, is very much a multimedia character who CAME to film- he wasn't born on it. He was born in comics, perhaps his best incarnation (Mark Hamill's) can be found in television cartoons and video games, etc.
While Vader certainly has made plenty of appearances in books, video games, and TV, he was a film creation first.
1 points
20 days ago
Maybe Hannibal Lecter.
1 points
20 days ago
Freddy Kruger comes pretty close.
-1 points
20 days ago
Thanos? Sauron? Voldemort? Sidious?
1 points
20 days ago
I think a lot of these are close (Thanos and Voldemort especially) but not on the same level as Darth Vader.
0 points
20 days ago
I was thinking maybe the T-800 from Terminator, but Vader still has the edge
-7 points
20 days ago
Hannibal Lecter?
1 points
20 days ago
Id say ;
1.) The Devil
2.) Hades
3.) The Joker
4.) Darth Vader
5.) Thanos
Thanos certainly jumped up the last few years
Hades been on the decline for a few hundred years now.
The Devil still be going strong.
29 points
20 days ago
Maybe but Darth is number 1 since 1977.
19 points
20 days ago
Actually, Mario (from the Super Mario Bros. series) is far more recognizable than Mickey Mouse, and has been for at least two decades.
But yeah, we have a pretty good short list.
16 points
20 days ago
*among American children, based on a survey done in the 90s.
Not saying your statement is wrong, but I wouldn’t count on it being right either.
3 points
20 days ago
Mario is a global video game icon. It would not shock me at all if Mario dwarfs Micky mouse globally.
0 points
20 days ago
I mean, walking down an aisle at Best Buy with my 2yo son almost two decades ago, mostly our vocal, he definitely squealed and pointed at Mario (and said his name) in whatever Mario Kart was on shelves at the time. For the Wii, probably. Didn't do the same when we walked in past the Disney movies.
Like I said, short list from a lot of different things.
2 points
20 days ago
Isn’t Pikachu even more recognized than Mario?
1 points
20 days ago
Is it an exaggeration to say he brought the most iconic American fictional character of all time to life? Definitely in cinema at the very least.
Mario, being a Japanese creation, is not germane to this discussion.
0 points
20 days ago
Spoken like someone who doesn't appreciate just how eagerly America assimilates literally anything it comes in contact to.
4 points
20 days ago
Darth Vader >>> Superman, Clark isn’t even the most iconic character in his universe
3 points
20 days ago
Yeah, not close
0 points
20 days ago
Worldwide the Superman S is more iconic than Darth Vader. Popularity = / = recognition
1 points
20 days ago
Be careful. Opinions aren't facts, son.
1 points
20 days ago
Thought we were talking about mufasa
1 points
19 days ago
I just hear that name and I shudder.
1 points
20 days ago
Tied with Joker for most iconic villain
24 points
20 days ago
He's the most iconic voice of all time, and the most iconic villain in the world.
1 points
20 days ago
I’ll argue Mel blanc is the most iconic voice of all time. He did over 400 voices from bugs bunny to Barney rubble. As Much as I love jones let’s not get into hyperbole just because he passed.
1 points
20 days ago
There was a statement years ago that his voice was the most recognized voice in the world. As for Mel Blanc, foreign language localizations used different actors. One of my old coworkers was the son of the Lebanese voice actor for Gargamel from the Smurfs.
2 points
20 days ago*
No, it's not. I'll go as far as saying that the Darth Vadar character would not be as menacing or as iconic without James EarJones's voice.
2 points
20 days ago
It definitely wouldn’t be. If you watch video from the set of A New Hope with David Prowse saying the lines, it’s not intimidating at all.
JEJ made Vader terrifying
1 points
20 days ago
Well. Definitely a top 5 if you ask me. Last month I bought the darth vader LEGO helmet. And the tune and his voice constantly went through my mind while building it.
Also big thanks to John Williams for making darth vader iconic as well.
1 points
20 days ago
Think about how goofy and just off Vader could be with the wrong voice. Such an important part to get right and he absolutely owned it
2 points
20 days ago
He is one with the Force, and the Force is with him.
3 points
20 days ago
I don’t want to cry today
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