is the engine Annie and Clarabel originally belonged to, unlike in the books and the original TV adaptation. In the book and the original episode, James crashes out of sight offscreen which prompts Thomas to get the breakdown train. In this version, Thomas instead chases after the runaway James to try and stop him, but this ultimately fails and James crashes into a field. Thomas then gets the breakdown train, has James put back on the tracks, and takes him to the Steamworks. James comes back some time later, now painted in his familiar red, but finds his twin coaches have been designated Thomas' for his new branch line's use. In the 2017 movie Journey Beyond Sodor, After Henry is injured and prevented from taking a freight train to the mainland, James is assigned the transport. However, as James has been teasing Thomas for always being stuck on his branch line, Thomas takes the train instead to spite him. When Thomas goes missing, James volunteers to go look for him in hopes of being praised as a hero. After some investigation, he uncovers Frankie and Hurricane's deception on Thomas' whereabouts. However, he is imprisoned in a large steelworks that Thomas had escaped from earlier and is forced to work there. He is eventually rescued by Thomas and a group of misfit experimental engines. James in Thomas and the Magic Railroad In the 2000 film, Thomas and the Magic Railroad, James was threatened by Diesel 10 and almost got pushed back into a smelting pit before being teleported out by Mr. Conductor Jr. (portrayed by Michael E. Rodgers). In the beginning, the fly annoying James was a reference to the original Awdry story "Buzz, Buzz". Susan Roman voiced James in the film. Michael Angelis provided James's voice in the workprint, along with Percy. James in All Engines Go In the 2021 reboot, James was brought back as a regular character. However, unlike the original series, he was brought down as a main cast member, now appearing as a supporting character. Much like many of the other characters in the reboot, many of James' design elements and personality were altered to a more engaging dynamic towards the young engines. He does exhibit carelessness with his (often) dropped cargo. Voice actors English Susan Roman (Thomas and the Magic Railroad) Michael Angelis (Thomas and the Magic Railroad, original work-prints only) Keith Wickham (UK, Hero