The world is mourning the loss of James Earl Jones, but no one is more saddened than his beloved co-stars, like Mark Hamill.
Star Wars has forever etched both Mark and James into cinematic history, as they acted out one of the biggest plot twists in cinematic history on screen together.
Following the news of James’ passing, Mark was one of the first to issue a statement mourning the loss, not just for himself but for the world at large.
James Earl Jones dies at age 93
James Earl Jones, the all-star actor who worked in film, television and stage, passed away on September 9th. His representative confirmed that he died surrounded by his family at his home in Dutchess County, New York. Variety, When he died.
His cause of death is unknown, but it comes after James had retreated from the Hollywood spotlight for nearly five years, his final film role being opposite Eddie Murphy in the highly anticipated sequel, Coming 2 America.
In fact, his later years were dominated by reprising roles that had made him an iconic Hollywood character: when Disney decided to remake The Lion King into a CGI and live-action animated film, no one was asked to return as the voice of the character except James, who returned once again as the voice of Mufasa.
He later voiced the iconic villain Darth Vader on multiple occasions over the years, beginning with the role in the 1977 film Star Wars: A New Hope.
But he will forever be remembered for that scene in The Empire Strikes Back.
Mark Hamill pays tribute to ‘father’ James Earl Jones
The EGOT winner is survived by two sons, her own son Flynn Earl Jones and film actor Mark Hamill.
Mark played Luke Skywalker opposite Jones’ Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy, and in The Empire Strikes Back it was revealed that the young Jedi character he played was actually the Sith Lord’s son.
The line, “Luke, I’m your father,” delivered to perfection in James’ iconic baritone, remains one of the most quoted lines in film history.
So upon hearing the news of James’ passing, Mark quickly took to X (formerly Twitter) to pay tribute to his longtime co-star.
#RIP Dad???? https://t.co/YXpFoBb2Ua
— Mark Hamill (@MarkHamill) September 9, 2024
Another Star Wars star dies
Sadly, Mark had to say goodbye to many of his co-stars from the original Star Wars series.
Most notably, beloved actress Carrie Fisher, who played Luke’s sister Leia, passed away in December 2016 at the age of 60. She suffered a heart attack and was about to begin filming the final Star Wars movie, The Rise of Skywalker, shortly before her sad passing.
Shortly after, Peter Mayhew passed away in 2019 at the age of 74. He is best known for playing Chewbacca in the original Star Wars trilogy and Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. He had a low profile in the latest trilogy of films, but was involved in developing the next generation as a consultant on the films.
Finally, actor Jeremy Bulloch, who played the armored bounty hunter Boba Fett in Star Wars, passed away in December 2020 due to health complications.
