What Darth Vader Meant to Us
Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
A Cover Story on James Earl Jones’ death and his profound gravitas in life.
In The Industry News, we look at a big exit from Fifth Season and a highly unusual HBO screwball comedy from a serious Academy Award-winning director.
Actor Spotlight shows the creepiest side of a lovable actress, and another actor is having a wild career resurgence 20 years after their prime.
In Festival News, a robot gets wild, a heartthrob goes creepy, and Odysseus gets ripped. And Black Mirror meets Drunk History.
Let’s go!
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JAMES EARL JONES DIES AT 93 YEARS
The world mourns James Earl Jones.
The iconic EGOT winning actor, voice of Darth Vader and Mufasa, passed away yesterday at 93.
This is tragic and heartbreaking.
My first contact moment with Jones was as a young kid sitting around my living room re-watching The Lion King (1994) on VHS and hearing the magnanimous Mufasa teach his son a life lesson:
“There’s more to being a king than getting your way all the time.”
The weight of Jones’ voice embued this statement with an auroa of the profound, speaking to the idea that no matter your age, you must be responsible.
And then later, when I first heard his powerful rumble as Darth Vader, it almost seemed inhuman:
“I am your father.”
Rewatching this Star Wars clip, I forgot not only how bone-chilling his voice was, but he sparked the idea of inevitability, of being unable to escape your fate. It was a theme I later became obsessed with, through my favorite genre of time travel films.
In Star Wars, Jones created a mythos and gravitas for this lone cloaked figure—something that arguably no one will ever be able to truly capture.
That talent and raw power made Jones’s career span over 50 years, with standout roles in Shakespearean productions, major Broadway plays like Fences, and films such as Dr. Strangelove, The Great White Hope, and Field of Dreams.
He was a profound voice and will be deeply missed.
For More:
Best Movies of James Earl Jones:
Star Wars
I am your father, clip. I forgot how chilling this was
Lion King
The Magnanimous Mufasa teaches his son a life lesson clip
Field of Dreams
People will come clip. A constant inspiration
Sandlot
You’re in trouble clip
He loved Shakespeare. Here he is reading Othello to President Obama
12 great films of James Earl Jones, here, including some starring roles and his breakout Stanley Kubrick film.
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
Spider-Man 4 is going to be a big deal: Marvel Studios has chosen Daniel Destin Cretton (dir: Marvel’s Shang-Chi) to direct Spider-Man 4, replacing Jon Watts.
Will Cretton be able to imbue the series with the same down-to-earth folksiness that resonated with his first films, Short Term Twelve or Just Mercy? That’s what I appreciated about the first Spider Man (2002), how relatable it felt to my experience.
The plot for Spider-Man 4 remains unclear, but it follows the events of No Way Home, where the world forgets Peter Parker is Spider-Man. There have been rumors of a creative conflict, which we explore here: https://theindustry.co/p/spider-man-4
HBO’s Harry Potter series puts out an open casting for Harry Potter and the gang. It’s going to be mega difficult to eclipse the brilliant chemistry of the original cast, which was felt from the very first taping together (watch Emma Watson nail the group audition).
Here are the details: https://theindustry.co/p/a-new-harry-potter
Former president of Fifth Season TV, Joe Hipps, has stepped down, here’s what happened:
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