How James Earl Jones Left the Young Stars ofThe SandlotSpeechless During His 1 Day on Set

Mar. 15, 2025

James Earl Jones in 1993’s ‘The Sandlot’.Photo:Alamy

Alamy

James Earl Jonesdidn’t have a lead role in 1993’sThe Sandlot,but he left a giant impression — particularly on the film’s young stars.

In a 2023 interview onThe Rich Eisen Show, SandlotstarPatrick Rennarecalled his memory of Jones —who died on Monday, Sept. 9, at 93 years old— on his one day on set in Utah.

“We all knew him as Darth Vader,” Renna, now 45, shared. “He was there for a day. He had this huge trailer, and he was larger than life. He’s the famous James Earl Jones — we’re all speechless, and he was so cool.”

Though the whole tween cast was supposed to shoot a scene with him, the director changed the script to just feature two of the young stars, Tom Guiry and Mike Vitar (pictured above).

The cast of ‘The Sandlot’ in 1993.20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection

“He just looked at us and laughed in one scene,” Renna said of Jones' character, the mysterious neighbor Mr. Mertle.

Eventually, Marty York (who played Alan ‘Yeah-Yeah’ McClennan) went up to him. “None of us had the guts,” Renna shared. He said, " ‘Sir, I hear you’re James Earl Jones,’ or something like that. ‘You were Darth Vader inStar Wars.‘And he looked at him and said, ‘No I am your father.’ And that was it."

“That was the only time any of us talked to him, and it was pretty great. I didn’t need to meet him after that. It’s good, it’s done,” Renna said. “I’ll never forget; I remember that day, just seeing him from afar.Field of Dreamshad already come out, he’s been in plenty of movies and then of course we know him asthatvoice.”

Jones had a lengthy career that began in the 1950s, earning him numerous awards nominations (and EGOT status) along the way. He lent his one-of-a-kind voice to an endless array of iconic roles, includingStar Wars’memorable villain and Mufasa inThe Lion King.

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Born in 1931in Mississippi, the actor attended theUniversity of Michigan, where he was a pre-med major and a member of the Reserve Officer Training Corps. He eventually joined the school’s drama department, and graduated in 1955.

source: people.com