You Can Watch James Earl Jones' 5 Best Movies In One Place

Today, the world mourns the loss of James Earl Jones, who passed away at his home in New York State at the age of 93. If you want to revisit some of his very best movies, you won't have to look far; his five highest-rated films according to IMDb are all available on Disney+.

Thanks to the fact that Disney now owns Lucasfilm — the studio behind the three original "Star Wars" movies — and that the House of Mouse also produced the animated movie that features one of Jones' most beloved performances, one streamer is home to Jones' most famous films. Jones was known for his long and illustrious career on both the screen and stage, but there's absolutely zero question that people most associate him with his performance as Darth Vader in George Lucas' space epic. (With that said, if you want to watch "Field of Dreams," that one's currently on Netflix, and "Coming to America" is on Paramount+.)

No James Earl Jones movie marathon would be complete without these five picks, though ... and they're all on the same streamer. Here are Jones' five best movies that you can watch on Disney+.

Most "Star Wars" fans will argue that the middle film in the original trilogy, "Star Wars: Episode V — The Empire Strikes Back," is the best in the entire franchise ... and while that's a different argument for a different article, it is definitely a standout in the series and features James Earl Jones' most iconic moment as the trilogy's villain Darth Vader (who's played physically by David Prowse, as Jones just provides the voice). 

As the leader of the evil Imperial Fleet, Vader is hunting the Rebel Alliance — a group that includes Mark Hamill's dashing hero Luke Skywalker — and manages to plan a trap for Luke by bringing his allies Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee Williams), Han Solo (Harrison Ford), and Princess Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher) together in Cloud City as they surrender to Vader's hired hitman Boba Fett (Jeremy Bulloch, though he's voiced by Jason Wingreen). As Vader expected, Luke shows up to rescue his friends — though he does seal Han in carbonite first to test out a way to imprison Luke when he arrives — and while Lando and Leia escape, Luke fights Vader. 

This is, as you probably know, the movie that (years-old spoiler alert) reveals that Vader is Luke's father, and it's certainly Jones' most impactful and unforgettable scene in the "Star Wars" franchise. It's no surprise, with that in mind, that this is his highest-rated movie, and it's on Disney+.

Okay, to be fair, James Earl Jones only appears in "Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith" very, very briefly, and it's at the very end. Why? This is the "Star Wars" prequel trilogy, so throughout the three films, a younger version of Darth Vader, who still goes by his birth name Anakin Skywalker, is played by Hayden Christensen. (The actor later reprised his role in the Disney+ original shows "Ahsoka" and "Obi-Wan Kenobi.") 

Technically, Jones' appearance in "Revenge of the Sith" is a cameo, and an uncredited one at that, but still — he provides the iconic Darth Vader voice after Anakin fully turns to the Dark Side in the wake of his wife Padmé Amidala's (Natalie Portman) tragic death. (She dies during childbirth as she gives birth to Anakin's twins Luke and Leia, but Emperor Palpatine, played by Ian McDiarmid, lies and says Anakin killed her, giving the future Vader a reason to fully turn away from the Jedi Order.) You only hear Jones' voice for a quick moment after Anakin dons the mask, but it's still an incredible moment ... and it's on Disney+.

The first-ever "Star Wars" movie — which was retroactively dubbed "Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope" after the franchise took off and eventually split into three separate trilogies — is still one of the most beloved sci-fi movies of all time, and that's thanks, in large part, due to James Earl Jones' defining vocal performance as Darth Vader. Right at the beginning of "A New Hope," we meet Darth Vader as he walks through the hallways of the Death Star to John Williams' incredible "Imperial March" for the very first time before meeting Princess Leia Organa, an undercover Rebel leader captured by Vader's forces. We know what kind of guy Vader is right away, which is to say he's terrifying; he Force-chokes one of his underlings and orders the complete destruction of Alderaan, Leia's home planet, forcing her to witness the deaths of everyone she knows.

Ultimately, we meet Luke Skywalker as he sets out to save Leia — informed of her captivity by her faithful droid R2-D2 and his buddy C-3PO — aided by the Jedi master Obi-Wan Kenobi (the late Alec Guinness), who eventually sacrifices himself to protect Luke by fighting Vader himself. We learn about Vader's nuances later — as well as the fact that, well, he's Luke and Leia's dad — so throughout "A New Hope," he just looks totally evil ... and Jones' vocal performance sells it. Again, the movie's ready for you on Disney+.

Darth Vader is finally defeated during the third and final movie in the original "Star Wars" trilogy, subtitled "Episode VI – Return of the Jedi," and it's surprisingly emotional thanks to James Earl Jones' absolutely stunning voice performance. Between Yoda and the Force ghost of Obi-Wan Kenobi, Luke knows, beyond any shadow of a doubt, that Vader is his father ... and he believes that he can still help his dad turn back to the Jedis and the Rebel Alliance. Unfortunately, Vader isn't buying what Luke's selling and refuses to turn away from the dark side, which ends up causing his downfall.

Emperor Palpatine also faces off against Luke when he's captured by Imperial forces and brought to the Death Star, but when Luke begins to fight the Emperor using the Jedi techniques he learned from Yoda, Vader can't help but get involved. When the Emperor uses Force lighting to torture Luke, Vader kills him and dies in front of Luke, begging his son to remove his helmet so they can truly see each other one last time. It's shockingly gutting to see the movie's main villain die, which is a true testament to Jones' layered portrayal of the antagonist — and, as I'm sure you've surmised, it's on Disney+.

The only non-"Star Wars" movie on this list is equally as iconic as any of James Earl Jones' performances in George Lucas' sci-fi films, and the funny thing is that it's also a memorable voice role. In 1994, Jones lend his voice to the Disney animated feature film "The Lion King" as Mufasa, the original titular "lion king" who welcomes his baby boy Simba right at the beginning of the movie. As a young cub, Simba (Jonathan Taylor Thomas) is desperate to grow up and be king already and lovingly butts heads with his wise father ... and when Mufasa's evil brother Scar (Jeremy Irons) leads Simba out of the safe kingdom, Mufasa has to go and rescue him.

In one of the saddest scenes in the history of animated movies, Mufasa rescues Simba from a horde of stampeding wildebeests, only for Scar to throw him into the fray while Simba watches his father perish. Jones later reappears in the movie when Mufasa's spirit appears to Simba in the sky to help guide him, and actually, this isn't the only time that Jones played the beloved character. In 2019, Jon Favreau made a photorealistic remake of "The Lion King" with stars like Donald Glover (as Simba) and Beyoncé (as Nala), and guess who voiced Mufasa? Jones himself. Both versions of "The Lion King" are on Disney+ (but the animated version is still ... king).