The Darth Vader Voice Changer is a toy released by

Hasbro Hasbro, Inc. (; a syllabic abbreviation of its original name, Hassenfeld Brothers) is an American multinational corporation, multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment holding company founded on December 6, 1923 by Henry, Hillel and Herma ...

in 2004 as part of the tail end of its Original Trilogy Collection line of toys focusing on characters from ''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera media franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and Cultural impact of Star Wars, quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop cu ...

'', ''

The Empire Strikes Back ''The Empire Strikes Back'' (also known as ''Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back'') is a 1980 American epic film, epic space opera film directed by Irvin Kershner from a screenplay by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan, based o ...

'', and ''

Return of the Jedi ''Return of the Jedi'' (also known as ''Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi'' is a 1983 American epic space opera film directed by Richard Marquand from a screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and George Lucas. The sequel to '' The Empire ...

''. The voice changer allows the wearer to talk in a voice somewhat like

James Earl Jones James Earl Jones (January 17, 1931 – September 9, 2024) was an American actor. A pioneer for black actors in the entertainment industry, Jones is known for his extensive and acclaimed roles on stage and screen. Jones is one of the few perfor ...

Darth Vader Darth Vader () is a fictional character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise. He was first introduced in the original film trilogy as the primary antagonist and one of the leaders of the Galactic Empire. He has become one of the most iconic villain ...

, the Dark Lord of the Sith, and also included numerous built-in phrases and Vader's breathing sound from the movies. Variations of the helmet also exist. In 2008, a similar

Clone Trooper Clone troopers are fictional characters from the ''Star Wars'' franchise created by George Lucas. First introduced in the live-action film '' Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones'' (2002), they have since appeared in various other ...

Voice Changer was released to promote the ''

Clone Wars The Clone Wars, also known as the Separatist Crisis, is a fictional three-year conflict in the ''Star Wars'' franchise by George Lucas. Though mentioned briefly in the first ''Star Wars'' film (''A New Hope'', 1977), the war itself was not depic ...

'' film. In regions such as

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

where languages other than English are spoken, the Darth Vader Voice Changer's sounds were modified to fit the language demographic. However, rather than replacing the movie phrases with foreign-language versions, the button that plays back the phrases in the U.S. version simply plays back the same breathing sounds activated by the adjacent button in both the European and U.S. versions. This proved to be a popular toy. and was repackaged for later use. In early 2005 it was sold in a revised box for the movie '' Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith''.

References

Hasbro products Products introduced in 2004 2000s toys Darth Vader Star Wars merchandise {{StarWars-stub