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darth vader comes to fortnite using James Earl Jones AI voice (1) Fortnite

You Can ‘Speak’ with an AI Version of James Earl Jones’ Darth Vader Voice on FORTNITE

Originally posted on Nerdist | By Rotem Rusak | Last updated May 16, 2025 12:26 PM ET

If there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s that James Earl Jones had a magnificent voice. And James Earl Jones’ Darth Vader voice is one of the most magnificent of all. That voice will ALWAYS be associated with the terrible leader of the dark side on Star Wars. Before his death, as he finally retired, James Earl Jones granted Disney the rights to recreate his Darth Vader voice via AI in future Star Wars projects. The first instance of this AI recreation of Jones’ voice happened in Obi-Wan Kenobi, Disney and Lucasfilm used a program called Respeecher to create the sound of Vader. And now, Disney will once again use generative AI to bring James Earl Jones’ Darth Vader voice to life, this time in Fortnite. This time however, James Earl Jones’ Darth Vader voice won’t just recite canned lines, but actually “speak” to players.

In a blog post, Disney and Epic Games company share the following about using AI to bring James Earl Jones Darth Vader back to life. “Darth Vader wouldn’t be nearly as sinister without the legendary performance of James Earl Jones, who voiced Vader in the Star Wars films. We’re honored to feature the voice of the late Mr. Jones, and we thank his estate for the opportunity to make this happen for players.” The post also features a post from the family of James Earl Jones that shares, “James Earl felt that the voice of Darth Vader was inseparable from the story of Star Wars, and he always wanted fans of all ages to continue to experience it. We hope that this collaboration with Fortnite will allow both longtime fans of Darth Vader and newer generations to share in the enjoyment of this iconic character.”

But how will “speaking” to Jones’ Vader via AI actually work? Fortnite notes, “Strategize with the ultimate Sith Lord. With your voice. And he’ll respond back using conversational AI. Darth Vader has touched down once again as a boss in Battle Royale, replacing Darth Vader Samurai. Be the first to recruit him and your whole team will be able to take turns talking to the Dark Lord. Just remember to press the special Darth Vader button that’ll pop up to talk to him. Ask him all your pressing questions about the Force, the Galactic Empire… or you know, a good strat for the last Storm circle. The Sith Lord has opinions.”

We’re going to give this one a big hrm… Although we feel glad that James Earl Jones actually gave his own free consent for Disney to recreate his Darth Vader voice using AI, it also feels worth pointing out that AI has TREMENDOUSLY evolved since 2022 when he gave his consent. We also approve of his family’s involvement in the affair. But even still, the idea that users can speak to James Earl Jones’ Darth Vader, and the generative AI might generate anything in response is a bit troubling—even beyond the usual concerns of ethics and morality.

james earl jones darth vader fortnite ai reporting (1) Fortnite

In an FAQ section, Fortnite notes that users can report anything Darth Vader says. They note the question, “Can I report something Darth Vader says?” And answer, “Yes. You can do this in the Darth Vader channel in Voice Chat or by submitting a bug report. This is separate from Voice Reporting.” This FAQ seemingly hints that Fortnite has some assumption that James Earl Jones’ AI Darth Vader voice may say something that merits reporting. And we’re not sure we like that very much at all.

For now, we’ll just have to see what happens.

This article first appeared on Nerdist and was syndicated with permission.

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