In remembrance of James Earl Jones, it is time to look back on why his casting as best Star Wars villains.

Jones was born in Mississippi in 1931, but later moved to Michigan, where he was raised. As a child, he would eventually grow into a problematic stutter that affected him greatly. He eventually learned to overcome this, and after his military service in the mid-1950s, he began his Broadway career after moving to New York. The Shakespearean-trained actor would build up a solid career on stage and started accepting minor roles in movies in the 1960s. By 1977, his distinct voice earned him a small role in a blockbuster called Star Wars.

James Earl Jones' Performance Is What Made Vader An All-Time Great Villain

His voice shaped Vader's frightening inhumanity

From Darth Vader's first entrance through that corridor in A New Hope, we instantly felt fear and intimidation at this tall hunk of machinery. You knew nothing about his character, but you knew he was evil. A legend was incarnated once we heard him speak and begin to choke out a Rebel Alliance trooper. This deep, scary voice ordering everyone around dazzled audiences, and as the movie went on, it only became more mesmerizing. Jones believed his voice-over work was just a special effect, but he was wrong. His voice made the character what he is today.

A sequel was inevitable once Star Wars became one of the biggest box-office movies in American history. Jones was asked to return and reprise his role but wanted to change things a little. In an interview with Conan O'Brien in 1995, Jones said, "We spent a whole day trying to figure out what we did right." Jones wanted to improve on his already perfect performance. Jones said George Lucas told him not to get too expressive, saying, "It's all about the narrow banner of expression. If you get too expressive, he seems too human."

Having Darth Vader be viewed as something non-human was a crucial choice. This evil character could not be allowed to show humanity in him. Although it wasn't known how at the time, this giant robotic figure had his humanity stripped away from him in the most tragic of ways. Jones' voice is perfect in regard to this inhumanity within Vader. The voice-over he provided for Vader in multiple Star Wars projects across various mediums encapsulates Vader's inhumanity by working along that narrow monotone banner. This is why Jones was the only choice to play Darth Vader.

George Lucas Believed Jones' Voice Was Needed For The Role

Jones' voice was an ascending one when he got asked to do Vader

Before he broke into Hollywood, Jones mainly worked in theater. He gained particular prominence for his portrayals in multiple Shakespeare plays, particularly Othello and King Lear. He made his film debut in Stanley Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove in 1964 and gained notoriety in Broadway's The Great White Hope, for which he won a Tony Award in 1969. The play would be adapted into a film a year later, with Jones reprising the same role. It was his first lead role in a film. It was around this time when Jones' voice began to be sought out.

In an interview with the American Film Institute in 2009, Jones explained, "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." Jones claims that Lucas felt David Prowse's voice was too tenor (high-pitched) and that Vader needed a voice with bass (low-pitched). Vader's voice needed a voice in a lower pitch to get an intimidation factor that Prowse could not render. As fate would have it, Lucas lucked out with Jones, and Star Wars became what it is today.

Per Jones' request, he went uncredited in the first two Star Wars movies, but received credit in Return of the Jedi.

Vader Gave Us The Greatest Plot Twist In Modern Cinema

"No, I am your father." changed everything

Jones' voice is just one part of the equation explaining why Darth Vader is the legendary sci-fi villain he is today. The other part is Darth Vader's story. As he developed the sequel, Lucas decided to drop the biggest surprise in the history of movies by having Star Wars' antagonist be the father of the protagonist, Luke Skywalker. This moment in The Empire Strikes Back is still the greatest plot twist in cinema.

Although this trope is somewhat of a cliché now, the power of this moment altered the franchise and ascended Vader to even greater heights. Now, we know that Vader was once the great Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi spoke of in the first movie. "But why did he lie?" and "How did Vader turn evil?" were questions being asked by what must have been absolutely shell-shocked audiences. This dynamic between a film's hero and villain had never been seen before, and Vader being Luke's father added a whole new dimension to the term villain.

Vader Showed That Horrible Villains Can Be Redeemable

His redemption at the end of Return of the Jedi changed the conversation about villains in cinema

Once Luke learned that Vader was indeed his father, he was determined to save him in Return of the Jedi. It was sad to see in this movie that Vader felt he was too far gone and that putting forth the effort was a waste. This villain had become so entrapped mentally by all the horrible things he had done that he felt there was no way out for him. A significant component of this was the grip Luke attempted to untangle his father from: the grip of his master, Sheev Palpatine. By the end of Return of the Jedi, Vader redeemed himself and sacrificed his life for his son.

You already have [saved me], Luke. You were right about me.

Darth Vader was and still is one of the most fascinating villains ever. Seeing this evil character come back to the light, so to speak, and destroy evil to save his long-lost son was revolutionary. It was also extremely important for cinema. To see a villain of this caliber be able to find the goodness within him that he thought was lost was massive. While many villains in movies are beyond redemption, Darth Vader was a catalyst for villains in movies to be complex and three-dimensional rather than two-dimensional and black and white.

While we know much more about Darth Vader now than we used to, it cannot be understated how vital his character has been for the science-fiction genre of film. He is the premier example of a frightening villain who could forgive himself and find the strength within him to do right by someone who cared for him. His redemption arc is still revered for how amazing it is. The Star Wars story crafted for Darth Vader is second only to the portrayal by the legend who provided his unmistakable voice. Thank you, James Earl Jones, and may the Force be with you.