Entertainment

Kevin Costner, Mark Hamill and more pay tribute to ‘Star Wars’ actor James Earl Jones

Written by ABC Audio. All rights reserved. on September 11, 2024

As soon as news broke that legendary actor and voice over artist James Earl Jones died Monday at 93, Hollywood took to social media to mourn.

Jones, who famously voiced Darth Vader in the Star Wars franchise and Mufasa in the 1994 and 2019 Lion King films, died on Monday morning at his home in Dutchess County, New York, surrounded by his family, his rep confirmed to ABC News.

Here are just some of those tributes from his famous friends/fans:

His Star Wars co-star Mark Hamill posted in part “#RIP dad 💔.” In the films, Hamill played Luke Skywalker, son of Darth Vader.

Kevin Costner, who starred with Jones in Field of Dreams, took to Instagram to share, “If you’ve seen it, you know that this movie wouldn’t be the same with anyone else in his role. Only he could bring that kind of magic to a movie about baseball and a corn field in Iowa.”

“Rest in peace, friend,” Costner concluded.

Rob Minkoff: Minkoff, the director of the 1994 Lion King film, shared, “His portrayal of Mufasa was perfection. What a powerful man and actor. Gone but will never be forgotten. Rest in power.”

Octavia Spencer: The Oscar winner Instagrammed she is “incredibly saddened” by the news, adding, “Legendary doesn’t even begin to describe his iconic roles and impact on cinema forever.” She added, “His voice and talent will be remembered always. Sending love to his family, friends and countless fans in all galaxies, far, far away. 🤍🕊️”

LeVar Burton: Burton, who starred in the 1980 film, Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones with Jones, posted, “There will never be another of his particular combination of graces.”

Colman Domingo: “Rest. Thank you for everything. Everything. Everything,” the Rustin Oscar nominee wrote on Instagram. “We all looked to you. Thank you King James Earl Jones. Rest well.”

Yvette Nicole Brown: “Besides #StarWars, the first film I remember ever seeing was #Claudine,” Brown said in an Instagram post. “#JamesEarlJones is a part of my cinematic DNA. Heartbroken doesn’t begin to cover it.”

Bob Iger: The CEO of ABC News’ parent company Disney highlighted Jones’ career in a moving tribute shared on Disney’s Instagram page, saying in part, “From the gentle wisdom of Mufasa to the menacing threat of Darth Vader, James Earl Jones gave voice to some of the greatest characters in cinema history.”