James Earl Jones signs over the rights to Darth Vader's voice,

After over 40 years as Darth Vader's voice, James Earl Jones, one of the most unique voices in film history, appears to have taken measures to retire from the role.

According to Vanity Fair, the actor, 91, has turned over the rights to his voice to filmmakers employing new artificial intelligence technology. Matthew Wood of Lucasfilm told the magazine that the actor "wished to keep Vader alive."
"He stated that he was thinking about shutting down this specific persona," Wood told Vanity Fair. "So, how do we proceed?"

Earl Jones made his cinematic debut as the renowned Star Wars villain in 1977, and he has continued to voice the role on both the big and small screens up to this moment. He was most recently seen in the new Obi-Wan Kenobi series on Disney+.

While actor David Prowse wore the characteristic black costume of the Sith Lord in the original movie, Earl Jones gave the complicated Vader's peculiar deep tones.

Earl Jones is a well-known EGOT recipient in addition to his work on the sci-fi epic. In 2011, he earned an honorary Academy Award after being nominated for Best Actor in the 1970 film The Great White Hope.

Other original trilogy stars have returned to the franchise in recent years. To the joy of fans, Ewan McGregor, Hayden Christensen, and Mark Hamill have all reprised their roles. But it appears that one of the most memorable performers of all time has retired.