James Earl Jones has been the man behind Darth Vader’s iconic voice since the beginning of Star Wars, but at 91, he seems ready to have the job done for him. According to Vanity Fair, Jones signed on to the rights to his dossier voiceover work — allowing Ukrainian startup Respeecher to use AI technology to recreate his voice on Disney+’s “Obi-Wan” TV series.
To do this, Respeecher uses sound clips to “clone” the actor’s voice, which allows the studio to record new lines without the actor present. “mentioned that he was considering dropping” the role of Darth Vader, he approached him with the option. After Jones allowed Lucasfilm to use the AI-generated voice, Vanity Fair said the studio tasked Respeecher with making Vader sound like Jones’ voice for the dark-side Disney villain 45 years ago.
That’s why people may notice that Vader’s voice resembles his Obi-Wan voice from the earlier series, rather than Jones’ voice from 2019’s “Skywalker Rising. Although the studio used AI to voice Vader, Wood said Jones played the role of a “benevolent godfather,” which still helped guide the studio’s portrayal of the villain.
This isn’t the first time Respeecher has worked with Lucasfilm, either. The startup also voiced the young Luke Skywalker in Disney+’s “The Mandalorian” and “The Book of Boba Fett. In a press release, Respeecher explained that it used footage from Mark Hamill’s broadcasts, interviews, ADRs and voiceovers from many years ago to digitally recreate Skywalker’s voice.
Other AI voice synthesis tools such as Voicemod, Veritone, Descript and Resemble AI have emerged as potential ways for celebrities and creators to digitally recreate their own voices.
