Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Obi-Wan Kenobi episode 3.

As the Sith Lord comes more into the story and speaks his first words in the show, here's who voices Darth Vader in Obi-Wan Kenobi. The Disney+ show may only carry the name of the Jedi Master, but it's very much the entwined story of Obi-Wan and Darth Vader/Anakin Skywalker. Kenobi's past with Anakin Skywalker, leaving him for dead on Mustafar after his former Padawan had fallen to the dark side, continues to haunt him, while at the same time Vader hunts him down via his Inquisitors.

Obi-Wan Kenobi episode 3 massively ramps up the stakes of the conflict, though, by bringing Obi-Wan and Darth Vader face-to-mask for the first time since Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, which was 10 years ago in Obi-Wan's timeline. Vader stalks his way through the episode like a horror movie villain before the pair finally meet, wherein he's able to unleash the full extent of his incredible dark side Force powers, but even before then the terror and sheer presence of him is felt thanks to his iconic voice.

Related: Who Is Obi-Wan Kenobi's Brother?

Darth Vader's voice has long been integral to helping sell the character's menace and the real weight he carries, and that's no different here. Thankfully, he sounds very familiar with no real changes to his previous appearances, and that's because James Earl Jones voices Darth Vader in Obi-Wan Kenobi. It had previously been speculated whether Jones would return for the show, or if the Vader voicing duties would pass on to somebody else, but, as if the unmistakable tones weren't enough, Obi-Wan Kenobi episode 3's credits also confirm he is voicing Darth Vader here, although there's a little more to it, with Star Wars using the same technology used for Luke Skywalker's voice in The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett.

How Obi-Wan Kenobi Made Darth Vader's Voice Sound Like The Original Trilogy Again

Darth Vader in Obi-Wan Kenobi

Although Darth Vader's appearance in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story was rightly celebrated, one aspect that is changed is his voice, which sounds different to (and a little less intimidating than) the original Star Wars trilogy. This was likely a simply result of James Earl Jones getting older, since voices do change with time, but Vader's voice in Obi-Wan sounds far closer to the original movies than it did in Rogue One. Among the credits for Obi-Wan Kenobi episode 3 is Respeecher, the company who worked on digitally recreating Luke's voice in The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett because of Hamill's own voice being too different to play a young Luke Skywalker. For that, they took lots of old recordings - from multiple mediums - and fed them into an A.I. model, which could then re-produce the voice much closer to what he used to sound like, and the same process has seemingly been used for Vader here, explaining why there's much greater clarity to his voice and how it's just like he used to sound.

Why James Earl Jones Voices Darth Vader In Obi-Wan (& Why It's Not Hayden Christensen)

Obi-Wan Kenobi James Earl Jones as Darth Vader return

A big reason there had been some doubt over who would voice Darth Vader in Obi-Wan Kenobi was the previously confirmed return of Hayden Christensen, who'd be stepping into the suit properly after only briefly donning it at the end of Revenge of the Sith. With Christensen back as Darth Vader, and in such a high profile way (he has been very much centered in the marketing alongside Ewan McGregor), then the show may have had him voice Vader instead to fit with that. However, that wouldn't have been the right call, because as great as Christensen's return is, James Earl Jones is the voice of Darth Vader. He's voiced him ever since the original Star Wars in 1977 (when Vader was played by David Prowse), and done so in the prequels, sequels, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and Star Wars Rebels.

Having Jones voice Vader in Obi-Wan Kenobi (even via A.I.) not only helps keep that sense of continuity, but feels fitting because he is such a big reason the villain is so iconic. He's a major part of the character's legacy, and as Obi-Wan Kenobi writes a new chapter in Vader's story then it's only right he is a big part of that, helping to give it so much more gravitas and further connect it to the entire history of Star Wars.

Next: Obi-Wan Kenobi Episode 3 Ending & Final Fight Explained

Obi-Wan Kenobi releases new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.

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