Star Wars franchise iconic voice actor James Earl Jones is confirmed to be voicing Darth Vader in the new Disney+ Star Wars show, Obi-Wan Kenobi. Jones’ participation in the series had not been previously announced, and he appears in Episode 3–which hit Disney+ on Wednesday, June 1.
Warning: plot spoilers follow for Episode 3 of Obi-Wan Kenobi. In Episode 3, Darth Vader is roused from his meditation chamber to learn that Obi-Wan is on a mining planet. Vader heads there instantly, and pursues Obi-Wan–who is trying to lead young Leia to a port to meet her parents. Vader finds Obi-Wan, and they battle, with the Sith Lord getting the upper hand.
This week, Disney announced that Obi-Wan is now the most-watched Disney+ original series premiere worldwide to date. As is typical with streaming services making boasts about their content, though, Disney did not share any specific stats around total hours streamed, nor did it report which original series previously held the record. Of course, Obi-Wan surely got a viewing bump due to the fact that two episodes, not one, premiered at launch on May 27.
Other Star Wars TV shows available on Disney+ include The Mandalorian, which returns in February 2023 for Season 3, as well as The Book of Boba Fett. The next is Andor, which premieres in August. Beyond that, Disney is producing a new Star Wars show called Skeleton Crew with Jude Law.
